


Human Nature

by Helenajbarrett



Category: Invader Zim
Genre: F/M, ZaGf
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-01-06
Updated: 2018-02-28
Packaged: 2018-05-12 07:11:24
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Underage
Chapters: 19
Words: 55,393
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5657338
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Helenajbarrett/pseuds/Helenajbarrett
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>"It all started with a simple act of kindness. Okay, kindness isn't really my thing. Maybe *spite* is a better word to use when I describe this faithful act that ruined my life as I knew it. So, it all started with a simple, stupid, act of pity upon the wrong person. And now, I'm paying for it with my freedom."</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

* * *

  **Prologue**

* * *

It all started with a simple act of kindness. Okay, kindness isn't really my thing. Maybe _spite_ is a better word to use when I describe this faithful act that ruined my life as I knew it. So, it all started with a simple, stupid, act of “pity” upon the wrong person. Actually, person isn't even the right word-- _being_ is more accurate, now that I think about it. Being, creature, monster, alien, whatever. Ugh, even now when things have changed so drastically, I still wonder if I should have offered help to that green idiot.

My name is Gazalene Membrane, but if anyone is dumb enough to call me Gazalene, I have no reservations about ripping their throat out. Everyone who plans on living just calls me Gaz. They call me many different things, Gaz the Destroyer, Gaz the Terrible, the doom bringer, the list goes on. At least the Antichrist likes me. No, I'm not kidding or crazy, the closest thing I've ever had to a friend is legitimately the child of Satan. His name is Pepito, and for whatever reason, he and his father both seem to be of Hispanic heritage. I'm not even completely sure of his origins, but I've met his father a few times-he's got a great sense of humor...for someone who tortures the souls of the damned for a living.

I met Pepito a little while before Zim came to Earth and for a bit, my brother, Dib, pursued him, harassing him about his odd horns, his gross skin, and his stringy mop of hair. Pepito never was bothered by this, he actually made it well known to the students and staff of our school that he was the Antichrist. He didn't mind being feared, and that's what I found bearable about him. All of the other kids wanted to play with toys and trade stickers and go outside, but Pepito and I were able to stay in our own little world. Instead of playing at recess, we would make plans of world domination and mass destruction, the mutilation of our fellow students and many others.

As for my brother, he likes to call himself a paranormal expert/investigator. He's been following leads of possible cases, usually ending in reasonable happenings that were merely blown up by the incompetent minds of people in our town. When I was younger, I was borderline abusive to him; hitting him for just about anything, ridiculing him, letting Zim have his fun and experiment on him every once in a while. I'm better now I guess, I don't really hit him unless he's being an idiot (which is most of the time), and ever since I found out Zim was really an alien, I chose not to make fun of Dib for believing in the paranormal. Dib had a freaking meltdown when Zim started attending Skool. None of our stupid peers or teachers believed Dib when he tried relentlessly to convince them that Zim was really an alien. I myself didn't believe him until I saw the so-called alien. I was in awe that even our ignorant classmates couldn't see through the cheap disguise. And if his appearance wasn't enough to rouse suspicion, his behavior surely wasn't either. Everything about him really did scream "alien", but no one but Dib, Pepito, and I knew what Zim really was. But on the other hand, Dib was the only one who really cared, he obsessed even. Not until we reached Hi-Skool did my brother finally give up hope on exposing Zim.

Ah, Hi-Skool...The newest bane of my existence. At first I thought the worst thing was the cheerleaders and the overly peppy people, and honestly, everyone at the school in general. But alas, it turned out to be Hi-Skool as a whole that made me want to set that building on fire with everyone still in it. The only classes I enjoyed even a little bit were art and theater. I assume my interest in these classes was passed down to me from my mom-god knows it didn't come from my dad. All he cares about is science and inventing things to "better the world we live in". Which at this point, I think is a lost cause. Ever since Zim failed to catch people's attention and he continued to slip by unnoticed as an alien, I gave up on the people of Earth. I don't even know why Zim bothered trying to take over such a useless place, what could we possibly have to offer?

I'm getting off track. Skool. That's what I was talking about. Skool is...Okay, I guess. It isn't my favorite thing but it keeps my mind sharp, well, sharper the everyone else's. It seems like Dib, myself, Pepito, and Zim are the only people with any sort of potential in life. Now that I think of it, I haven't been at the same school as Dib and Zim since middle school-they both ended up going to a special smarty-pants school across town, while I decided I'd take the less annoying route and go to public Skool instead. I was regretting that now, the only thing, or should I say person, keeping me in school being my boyfriend, Oliver. Good lord, I've been with that kid for a long time. Three years is a long time for me at least, especially considering he's my first real boyfriend.

I've dabbled in relationships before him, even dated a girl or two just to see what it was like. But it was hard to find anyone that I could stand being around for long enough to really become...attached to them. And Oliver was the first person outside of my little circle not to annoy me constantly. I actually...liked him. And from there I even learned to love him and open up to him. I'd never done that before, and I'll admit, I was scared, I still am. I'm not sure how to trust someone when I've never had to, I've always relied on myself instead of others.

I've never felt comfortable opening up to anyone, not even Dib, to this day I still hide things from everyone. I don't trust anyone-but I want to trust Oliver. I'm known for not feeling or caring about anyone or anything. But the truth is, I do feel, and I do care...sometimes. I'm human, I do have weaknesses, and even if I resent myself for it, I'm not as cold as I'd like to be. The thing is, I don't care about the world at all, I don't care what happens to the human race-but I do care about my own little world, I care about my people, my brother, my friend, my boyfriend. I can care about them, and I'll happily let the rest of the world burn.


	2. The Switch

* * *

**Chapter 1**

* * *

_For the lives that I take, I'm going to hell_

_For the laws that I break, I'm going to hell_

_For the love that I hate, I'm going to hell_

_For the lies that I make, I'm going to hell_

_For the way I condescend and never lend a hand_

_My arrogance is making this head buried in the sand_

_For the souls I forsake, I'm going to hell_

_Married to the devil, you can hear the wedding bells._

_~Going to Hell-The Pretty Reckless~_

* * *

**Gaz's POV**

 

"I'm changing schools." I began casually as I walked hand in hand with Oliver down the hall. He stopped immediately, dragging me off to the side where we could talk.

 

"What? Why?!" He demanded, eyes wide with surprise. I sighed through my nose in slight irritation and rolled my eyes.

 

"Because, I don't like going here, the people here are idiots, they're not even smart enough to be afraid of me anymore. A few of the cheerleaders even tried to bully me while I was changing in gym yesterday. I wanna go somewhere where people will at least know better than to mess with me." I explained, crossing my arms with a scowl. Oliver frowned, his brown eyes saddened slightly.

 

"But what about me? What about us?" He inquired with a pout as he held onto my hands in desperation. My brows furrowed in further irritation.

 

"What about us? It's not like we'll never see each other. You only live a few streets over, so we can hang out after school." I assured him with a small smile. He still didn't seem convinced.

 

"What if you find someone else you like there though?" He argued, his eyes pleading with me to stay. I grabbed his face gently and narrowed my amber eyes fiercely at him.

 

"Oliver, I don't have time for this shit. I'm not going to like anyone else, okay? It's hard enough liking you, I won't go out of my way to find other people to like." I stated coldly, and by the look on his face, he seemed to feel worse rather than better. I sighed, knowing I needed to be nicer to him. I pulled him down to my level and kissed him for a short moment. When I pulled away, I forced a smile. "Look, I'm happy with you, and I doubt I could find _anyone_ as tolerable as you, so don't worry so much. Nothing is gonna change, alright?" I asked, raising a brow. I really just wanted this conversation to end but I also wanted to make sure it wouldn't happen again. I wanted to make sure that Oliver understood I wasn't going anywhere anytime soon, relationship-wise anyways. He smiled a bit and nodded, catching me off guard with a hug. I tensed slightly, I was still bipolar on how I felt about public displays of affection. But I returned the embrace, hoping no one would stare or point the action out.

 

Showing Oliver any sort of kindness at school was probably the only reason why people thought they could get away with pissing me off. I didn't like that, I didn't like that one bit. And that was the other reason I wanted to switch schools, so people would think I was cold, inhuman and otherworldly. I didn't want people to think it was okay to be around me, and I certainly didn't want them to think they could pick on me either. So I would have to transfer to the only other Hi-Skool in the city-the special smarty-pants skool. That was literally the name of it too, The Special Smarty-Pants Hi-Skool. I was smart enough to probably pass the entrance exam, so all I had to do now was request the transfer, study for the exam (Probably won't do that), and say goodbye to Pepito when I get accepted.

 

After Oliver and I split up to go to our classes, I stopped by my locker to grab my sketch book for art. I then proceeded to the aforementioned class and took a seat closest to the door. No one attempted to sit next to me, they knew that the seat next to me was reserved for Pepito. And no one in that class wanted to see the wrath of the Antichrist, except for me, I thought he was pretty funny looking when he was provoked. Speak of the Devil and he shall appear, I thought with a smirk as the boy walked through the door. He greeted me with a matching smirk as he walked over to our table. He hadn't changed much since we had first met. He was at least taller now, about 5'10" if I had to guess, and he hadn't really filled out much, pretty lanky compared to the other guys in our grade. All in all he was the same in personality, and he still looked like he didn't know how to use a hair brush. Creepy looking, to put it simply. And I respected that, he didn't try to blend in as time went on, he continued to make heads turn with his odd, yet somewhat charming presence. I guess that's why we still got along so well; we hadn't changed much.

 

"Good morning, _mi niña diablo._ " He purred in my ear before passing me to reach his seat. My smirk fell into a frown and I growled to myself.

 

"Good morning." I hissed as he took he's seat next to me. He smiled at me in a cock way, earning him a swift punch to the gut. He grunted in pain, leaning over onto the table for support.

 

"Stupid _puta._.." He said through gritted teeth, making me grin.

 

"Flattery will get you nowhere with me, you know that." I reminded him, still smiling contently as he finally sat up straight, holding his stomach. He glared at me before bending down to get his sketch book and pencils out of his backpack. Once everything he needed was out on the table, he spoke again.

 

"I see you're already in a _agradable_ mood this morning." He grumbled, flipping open his sketch book to a half-finished drawing of someone being ripped apart at the limbs. I chuckled at the realistic gore and shook my head, opening my own sketch book to a nearly finished deer-creature I had started over a week ago. All I had to do now was color her.

 

"And I see you took one out of old Nny's book." I teased, grabbing the colored pencils from my purse. I chose one black, one pink, and one purple colored pencil to start with.

 

"I really do hate it when you compare me to that pathetic mortal. He does what he does because he's _loco_ , I do it because it's my summer job." He pointed out, shading the drawing in places that needed it. I rolled my eyes.

 

"Don't pretend like you don't get off on it." I mumbled as I worked on my own piece. I started lightly coloring in her empty eyes with the black colored pencil.

 

" **That** is beside the point. So what if I enjoy my work?" He argued, pointing his pencil limply at me while he stared at his art. I smiled at him a bit and went back to my sketch book.

 

"Admit it, you're just as insane as Nny." I proded, knowing I was playing with fire when it came pissing him off. But it had been a couple weeks since I'd last seen him explode with anger, so I figured it was about time I get on his nerves. He glared at me again but said nothing as he went back to his drawing. I pursed my lips, maybe I wouldn't be able to get him mad today.

 

"Oh, thought I should probably mention, I'm transferring schools." I added, not bothering to gauge his facial reaction to the new information. But I assume it must have looked pretty awesome, because the next thing I heard was his chair screeching against the floor before falling altogether when he stood quickly. He grabbed my shoulders, hauling me out of my seat and to my feet. I glared at him, he knew better than to touch me, but it seemed he didn't care if he was doomed at the moment.

 

"YOU CANNOT LEAVE ME ALONE WITH THESE HORRIBLE HUMANS!" He exclaimed too loudly for my liking, making me cringe at the volume. Everyone was staring of course and I let out an irritated huff.

 

"Pepito, _I'm_ a horrible human too," I began, peeling his left hand away from my shoulder. Before I could finish what I was going to say, he cupped my face in his cold, ash colored hands. My eyes widened in confusion and slight panic, he'd never been so touchy-feely before and frankly, it was fucking disgusting.

 

"But you're not like the others, _mi amigo_. You are _el diamante_ compared to the rest of your kind. What am I going to do without you here?" He questioned, making an expression I had never seen him wear. He actually looked...really sad, almost like he was going to cry. I am not gonna deal with the Antichrist crying blood all over my good dress, I thought. I frowned up at him and quickly pulled away from him.

 

"You're going to be fine, whiner. You go to the other Hi-Skool everyday to harass Squee anyway, you can come to see me too." I told him, giving him a glare for having the gall to touch me so much in one day. Pepito finally became aware of all the attention we were drawing to ourselves and picked his seat up off the floor and sat in it once more. I did the same with a relieved sigh and went back to coloring my deer-creature. The rest of the class was spent in near silence after Pepito accepted that I was leaving whether he liked it or not.

 

After school, I walked to my brother's school so he could drive me the rest of the way home. What can I tell you, I didn't wanna walk home if I didn't have to. As I walked, I pulled out my old GS3 and started playing as I walked the memorizes route to the other Hi-Skool. I made sure to never play my GameSlave during my classes, I had made that mistake Freshman year and I didn't want to have to steal it back every time I got it confiscated. It was kinda funny breaking into the school for a while, but it grew old quickly and I simply resolved to play before school, during lunch, and after school. I didn't play it very much in my free time now that I thought about it, I only ever played when I had nothing else to do, which was rare. Between school, my part-time job at the skating rink, homework, and other hobbies, I was normally pretty preoccupied.

 

I was so wrapped up in my thoughts that I wasn't paying attention to where I was exactly and bumped into someone. When I was younger, if something simple like this happened, I would doom the person on the spot. But after years of anger management, I've learned to save dooming for people I really felt deserved my attention for that long. And that was a very few people. I lifted my head up to see who it was, only to be greeted with a set of glaring, contacted eyes. _Huh, it's been a while since Zim and I last ran into each other..._ I thought briefly before he spoke up.

 

"Filthy stink-beast! Watch where you are going!" The alien began, shouting at me until he realized exactly _who_ he was shouting at. At the realization, he instantly shut his mouth and stared at me with a look of awe on his face. "Dib-sister, is that you?" He asked, raising a nonexistent brow at me. I resisted the need to smirk at the weird way his face looked, and frowned.

 

"My name is _Gaz_ , moron. And if you _ever_ call me another one of those backwards insults _again_ , I'll rip your antennae out of your skull, and shove them down your throat. Are we clear?" I inquired calmly, though my glare and body language gave away the underlying rage in my threat. Zim's eyes widened a bit before he gave a nervous chuckle and took a step back.

 

"Heh, right, sorry!" He spouted quickly before sprinting away in the opposite direction. I grinned once he was out of sight and continued up to the school. _At least Space Boy still has a brain cell or two left,_ I thought as I spotted Dib at the top of the stairs by the entrance of the Hi-Skool. He waved with a small smile and I nodded in acknowledgment before turning to go find Dib's car. I patiently waited, leaning against the passenger side door while I played my GS3. I didn't notice Dib was there until he opened the driver's side door. I sat up and turned to face him, stashing my GameSlave in my bag.

 

"Sorry I made you wait. I was talking to a couple of friends." He told me timidly as we both got in the vehicle. I shrugged and put my seat belt on.

 

"Whatever, I don't need to be at work until four, so it's fine." I replied dully, watching out of my window as we pulled out of the parking lot. Dib tensed a bit and sighed, gaining my attention again.

 

"About that...there was a ghost sighting reported in the next town over, so me and the other guys from the paranormal club are gonna go check it out. So I won't be able to drive you." He confessed, his hands curling nervously around the steering wheel. I rolled my eyes in response, finding everything passing us as we drove much more interesting.

 

"I'll just take the bike, then. Should be enough gas left in the tank from last time." I muttered bordly to the window. Dib groaned in the seat next to me.

 

"Gaz, you know I _hate_ it when you take that thing out. It's dangerous with all these reckless drivers on the road." He droned, for probably the thousandth time since I got the damn thing. I gritted my teeth in annoyance but continued to stare out the window.

 

"And _you_ know that as much as I care about your opinion, I **don't** care about your opinion. I'll be fine, I wear a helmet, and I'm able to avoid crashes and stupid people just fine. So, for the millionth time, don't worry." I retorted, drumming my fingers on the armrest. My brother sighed in resignation, but said nothing more on the matter. Dib dropped me off in front of the house and waved goodbye before taking off.

 

I unlocked the door and went inside with a sigh. I had to get dressed for work right now if I wanted to be there on time. I trudged upstairs with a frown and opened my bedroom door. As I undressed, my mind wander, replaying today's events in my head. Oliver took the news pretty well, Pepito...not so much. But he'll survive. I should probably tell Dib, but that can wait until he gets back home. Then my mind thought something that made me freeze. Does this mean I'm going to have to be the mediator again between Zim and Dib? _No,_ I thought, _Dib hasn't even mentioned Zim in almost two years. They can't still be fighting with one another._ I pushed the thoughts out of my head and pulled on my red Roller Town shirt, the logo on the breast and back of it. Then I tugged my black pants on, tucked my shirt in and tied my hair back into a ponytail. I hated having to wear my hair back, but since I worked in the snack bar, I had little choice in the matter. With another heavy sigh, I grabbed my purse and my helmet and headed down to the garage. I straddled the black and purple motorcycle and turned the key, watching the fuel gauge anxiously. I breathed out a sigh of relief when I saw I still had enough gas to get me to work and back. I kicked off the bike stand and walked my bike out until I was in the driveway before pulling out at what I'm sure was an illegal speed for a neighborhood.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> These first few chapters are gonna be kind of boring but once we get to the plot hopefully it'll be as much fun to read as it was for me to write! c:


	3. A Day in the Life

**Chapter 2**

* * *

**A/N: TRIGGER WARNING: This chapter contains mentions of self mutilation and undertones of depression. I'll put a warning just before and after the mentioning so you don't miss anything important.**

* * *

_I will keep quiet_  
_You won't even know I'm here_  
_You won't suspect a thing_  
_You won't see me in the mirror_  
_But I crept into your heart_  
_You can't make me disappear_  
_Til I make you_

 _You'll never know what hit you_  
_Won't see me closing in_  
_I'm gonna make you suffer_  
_This hell you put me in_  
_I'm underneath your skin_  
_The devil within_  
_You'll never know what hit you_  
__~The Devil Within - Digital Daggers~_ _

* * *

**Later that evening...**

* * *

God, I almost forgot how much I hate working here... _Almost_. Aside from the horrible uniform, asshole coworkers, noisy brats, stressful environment, and rude/stupid customers, I guess I shouldn't complain. But one thing I have the right to complain about is that the most revolting, disgusting, intolerable twat works as the arcade maintenance guy; Iggens. Ugh, just his name makes me wanna barf. Maybe it wouldn't be so bad if he weren't so offensive to all five senses, and to top it off, he has an ego the size of a small country. Normally I don't loath people so blindly, but every little thing about that maggot sets me off. Worst of all, that little turd has the balls to flirt with me every time we share a shift! Some of my cowardice male coworkers respected him for his so called "bravery", and they were dealt with swiftly. Just as I finished making an order and serving it to the customer, I saw the employee entrance open, and Iggens walk in with that stupid, cocky grin of his. I groaned to myself, this was gonna be a long shift. I bent down to pull a few bags of pizza cheese out of the fridge when I heard a familiar and irritating voice from over the counter.

 

"Hey there, sweet cheeks." I almost banged my head on the counter when I stood up as quickly as I could. I turned to Iggens with a pointed glare.

 

 **"Iggens."** I greeted grudgingly. The stout teen chuckled with a smirk, leaning lazily over the counter.

 

"Mm, someone's looking good tonight..." He purred in a nauseating tone. I gritted my teeth and clenched my hands into fists.

 

"I always look good, you cretin. What do you want?" I growled, narrowing my amber eyes at him. As always, he let my hostility roll off of his slumped shoulders, and

shrugged.

"Just trying to make conversation, doll face." He replied with a revolting grin. I looked around to see if there were any customers or managers watching before leaning over the counter to grip Iggens by the front of his grease and sweat-soaked shirt.

 

"Listen up, Iggens. If you don't leave me alone right now, I will burn your favorite game in the aracade." I threatened, sneering at the ghastly excuse for a human being. Iggens looked confused and bewildered by what I had said, making me smirk.

 

"H-how would you even _do_ that?" He inquired, sufficiently horrified.

 

"I'm sure you haven't forgotten about our little run-in during elementary school, you've seen first hand what I can do by sheer force of will." I smiled knowingly as I brought my gaze to a game in the arcade. It was obviously his favorite, he made sure it was always in working order and clean after sticky kids played it. I focused on that sole game, everything else fading into the background momentarily. This eventually payed off once the game burst into flames and Iggens struggled to look at it for himself.

 

"TOTAL WAR-ZONE, NOOOOOOO!" He shrieked, tugging to get out of my grip. I released him and he fell to the floor, scrambling to get back on his feet. I smiled contently knowing I had destroyed something he loved and went back to work. Once my shift was finally over, I hopped back on my bike, got more gas, and headed home.

 

* * *

 

I sighed to myself as I unlocked the door to my house. I rested up against it for a moment, taking time to let my body and mind slow down. Only one word ran through my head now. ** _Empty._** Even if Dib were here, even if dad himself were here, this place would still feel empty. This house hasn't been a home to any of us for 17 years; not since our mother died. I had mixed emotions about it now that I was older and understood the gravity that day had on this family. When my mother was pregnant with me, it was a relatively normal period over those nine months. Things seemed to be going just fine up until the delivery. Some how, amniotic fluid entered my mother's blood stream, causing an immediate allergic reaction. In turn, her organs began to fail, and she was informed that if they began operating on her, they may not be able to save me. Being the woman she was, she chose to take the risk of not going under while I was removed through a Cesarean section. I know it's strange to have so many details about how your mom died trying to save you, but when I asked my dad what happened, he was very forward and short about. I think he was trying to make sure I never brought it up again, which I guess you could say worked. I never brought mom up again after that. I know I shouldn't have, but I felt responsible for everything that happened. I still do. I had indirectly torn this family apart and when I think about it, I don't miss my mom. I didn't know her or love her, so how could I? Instead of feeling like I'd lost something, I felt incredibly guilty. Because I knew in one way or another, this emptiness was my fault. Sometimes its frustrating having never really met her, I feel like it's a barrier now between the only two people left in my family. Dib says I look just like her, but I wouldn't know. Any photo of my mother that may have existed has either been stowed away or destroyed.

 

I think that's why my father stopped coming home-I'm a constant reminder of what he lost all those years ago. I've told Dib about how guilty I felt, it was my fault dad was never here. Being the big brother he is, he wouldn't let me think like that. He assured me it was because dad was just buried in work, trying to better the world for us, and to honor my mother's memory. I may not have known her, but I know she wouldn't have wanted him to do this. Especially since it meant he never spends time with me or Dib. I miss my dad. I mean, it doesn't make me want to cry like it did when I was little. But I do constantly wish we had him back. He used to be so funny, so nice and full of life. But he's become too tied up in his work and experiments and inventions, so he doesn't have time for us anymore, he doesn't have time to be a father anymore.

 

I let out a heavy breath, I always thought too much when I was alone. I needed a distraction. I pulled my phone out of my purse as I headed up the stairs to my room. I closed the door softly behind me and typed out a text to Oliver. I tossed my phone onto my bed and started getting undressed. I grabbed a towel and headed into the bathroom attached to my room. I started the shower and hoped in, not bothering to make sure the temperature wasn't too hot. I liked hot water anyways, so it didn't bother me to feel it stinging my skin. I closed my eyes briefly, letting the water wash over my face, chest, and hair before grabbing my shampoo. I massaged the lavender scented shampoo into my scalp and let it sit for a minute.

**TRIGGER WARNING:**

While I waited, I glanced down at myself, my eyes catching the thick, pink lines on my upper thigh. These were a reminder of a time in my life when I was weak with self-loathing and anger. I was stupid for thinking hurting myself would help me feel better. But really, I wasn't looking to feel better at that time, I just wanted to destroy myself. Things had changed since those little scars had healed; I held myself to a higher standard, I was above something so useless, I was better than this. And Dib finding out certainly made it hard to continue. It's not like he kept an eye on me or anything, but when he caught me, cutting my skin in the bathroom, he had broken down in tears. It's one thing when my brother gets the suffering he deserved after he's done something stupid, but for me to be the cause of it without trying to, it was worse than any hate I might have felt for myself. He was so broken up about it, like it was _his_ fault that it was happening. He's such an idiot sometimes...

****END TRIGGER WARNING****

Dib has what I like to call a Superman complex. He feels as though he has to save the world, like he has to save people, like he has to save _me_. But what he doesn't understand, is you can't save someone from themself. That's something they have to do on their own. And that's what I did. I got better, I took my medicine, I talked to that stupid fucking therapist and I got through it. I got stronger because I wouldn't give myself any other choice. And still...those _stupid_ little scars haunt me. Ugh, I can't even take a damn shower without straying to deeper issues I don't have the resources to properly handle. I chose to distract myself from my issues by singing to myself.

 

"You're voice I heard speak softly. In love it always will. My only hope is holding still. You're touch I felt so closely. Both leading, both give in. And with one move you moved again. If there's just one forever, I'd wanna spend it where you are. To have it back I'd take it. Replay it day for day. For just one look, one pause, one sway. If we should pull one under, it wouldn't change a word at all. Not every crack means thunder, and we could choose to end so far. Still this boat ain't built for weather. Rocking gently, down she goes. I leave you safe at home. With tired eyes and worn out faces, darling, I still see you as you are. With tired eyes and worn out faces, darling I still see you as you are." I focused on singing for the rest of my shower and dried myself off before going back to my room.

 

I picked my phone up off of the bed and leaned back into the mattress as I answer a few messages that I had gotten while I was in the shower. One from Oliver and one from Pepito. I asked Oliver if we were still on for our date night on Friday and replied back to Pepito. When Oliver messaged back, my brows furrowed at his reply.

 

_'I'm sorry babe, but I've got a marching band competition this Saturday so we're heading up on Friday night.'_

 

_'Oliver, this is the third time you've canceled on our plans. I'm getting sick of it.'_

 

I typed back, irritated. He'd never done anything like this to me before, he's usually pretty good about making time for us to get together. But for the past three weeks he's been blowing date night off. I'd be lying if I said I wasn't starting to feel hurt by it, but I wouldn't let him know that. Something just wasn't right, I could feel it. I decided to ignore any more texts I received from him for the rest of the night and went to bed. And by bed, I mean I tossed and turned until I passed out from exhaustion.


	4. The Nightmare Begins

**Chapter 3**

* * *

_I look inside myself and see my heart is black_  
_I see my red door I must have it painted black_  
_Maybe then I'll fade away and not have to face the facts_  
_It's not easy facing up when your whole world is black_

 _No more will my green sea go turn a deeper blue_  
_I could not foresee this thing happening to you_  
_If I look hard enough into the setting sun_  
_My love will laugh with me before the morning comes_

_~Paint It Black - The Rolling Stones~_

* * *

**A week later...**

* * *

I woke up to my alarm on my phone blaring, growling to myself as I shut it off. I sat there in my bed for some time, trying to keep my eyes open and wake up without actually doing anything. Realizing this wouldn't work, I trudged out of bed and went over to my blackout curtains. I abhorred the sun in the early morning- come to think of it, I hated _everything_ in the morning. Despite this, I opened the curtains to help me wake up, wincing at the bright light coming through. I was definitely more of a night person if I had to say anything on the matter. I shifted my gaze over to my new school uniform hanging off the back of my desk chair. I sneered at the thought of having to wear it four days out of the week. But on Fridays, students were allowed to wear their normal clothes as some sort of "reward" for wearing proper attire for the rest of the week. Being the type of person who expresses herself through her wardrobe, this was going to be uncomfortable to say the least. I sighed and walked past it, going into the bathroom to start my morning routine.

 

After brushing my hair and putting some makeup on, I went back into my room to put my uniform on. It consisted of a black skirt, long thick socks, a white dress shirt, a red tie, and a black blazer to go over everything. They gave me a pair of plain loafers but I refused to even put them on. Instead, I put on a pair of my highest heels with a deviant smile, just to raise a little hell on my first day. With that done, I went down the stairs to eat breakfast, passing a gaping Dib without saying a word. His stare followed me into the kitchen as I went straight for the coffee pot to pour myself a cup. "Gaz, you can't wear those-" I calmly placed a finger to my lips, a much gentler warning than I normally gave him. Dib knew I didn't interact with other people during the morning hours unless I had at least one cup of coffee in me. He sighed and took a seat at the round table in the center of our kitchen, drumming his fingers impatiently against it while he waited for me to down the hot beverage. Once I had, I set the cup down on the counter and spun around to face my sibling.

 

"What?" I asked coolly, cocking a brow and crossing my arms over my chest. Dib cleared his throat before speaking and nervously rubbed the back of his neck.

 

"They're not going to let you wear those shoes with your uniform." He told me in a slightly timid voice. I smiled a bit to ease his naturally high-strung nerves. After a childhood of me being an overly agressive and borderline abusive sister, he wasn't sure how to react to me since I had mellowed out a bit; Or at the very least learned how to internalized some of my aggression. He seemed to relax a just a little and even managed to smile back.

 

"I don't think it'll be a problem Dib, and if it is, I've got those ugly loafers in my bag as back up." I explained while grabbing a doughnut from a box on the stove. I had no intention of switching out of my heels, but I wouldn't risk suspension just in the name of trouble making. When I finished my doughnut I raced back upstairs, brushed my teeth and grabbed my backpack. By the time I got downstairs, Dib was already in the car. I got inside the passengers side and buckled my seat belt as we drove to my new school. To be completely honest, I was a little uneasy about starting here. These students were supposed to be smart, but what if some of them _still_ wanted to pick a fight with me? I couldn't run away from the stupidity of others forever, and this school was sort of my last resort. I gave a disgruntled sigh and decided to look out the window as I always did.

 

Before I really had time to settle my feelings, we were already in the student parking lot. I slung my bag over my shoulder and followed Dib into the school. It was fairly large compared to the other Hi-Skool, despite the smaller numbers, but I guessed that would mean less foot traffic in the giant halls. I took in my surroundings discreetly, my eyes simply moving from side to side whenever something caught my attention. Dib irritatingly guided me forward with his hand pressed to my shoulder blades. I cringed at the looks of passersby and the feeling of my skin crawling where Dib was touching me. But I knew that it made him feel like a good big brother when he did this, walking me to my first class, so I allowed it. We stopped in front of the doorway of the auditorium and he smiled down at me dotingly but I couldn't bring myself to return the favor.

 

"Well, here's your first class. Have fun, I'll see you again at lunch." He said before walking off. The bell for class hadn't rung yet, so there weren't but a couple of students sitting in their seats. I walked over to the teacher, who sat at her desk in front of the stage. I think her name was Mrs. Chester or something. She looked up at me and gave me a small smile.

 

"Hello, is there something you need?" She asked politely.

 

"No. I just thought I should introduce myself since I'm your new student." I replied dully, not really bothering to be polite back. She blinked for a moment before regaining her smile and standing from her chair.

 

"Oh! Okay, so you're Gazalene-"

 

"It's just Gaz, thanks." I told the woman with a frown. She just nodded and came around her desk to shake my hand.

 

"Alright, Gaz. We don't really have assigned seats in this class, but if you talk too much or cause trouble, your seat will be changed for you." She explained, attempting to sound strict. I snorted to myself and shook my head.

 

"I don't think that'll be a problem, ma'am." I chuckled, walking away from her to find a seat. I sat a few rows behind the rest of the early students and settled my things, I didn't want to socialize until it was absolutely necessary. Knowing how theater teachers think, I knew that we would play some sort of name game today, something that would require everyone to share something about themselves. Gross, I thought. That was probably the only thing I hated about theater, you had to actually get to know and get along with your cast and crew. Aside from that, I really enjoyed these classes and even some of the musicals/plays we would put on.

 

"Alrighty class, we have a new student! You all know what that means!" Mrs. So and so began with a gleeful disposition. The entire class groaned in annoyance. We ended up playing an name game like I had predicted, but we also played a fun improve game called bus stop. The object was to make the other person laugh and stay on the bench as long as possible. I guess it wasn't too horrible for the first day. From there, I moved on to trigonometry. Math was a breeze, since I actually payed attention to it and did the homework. After that, I had third period English with some old fart who insisted I introduce myself.

 

"My name's Gaz, if you need anything from me, reconsider." I went completely rigid when I spotted the last person on Earth I would have wanted to run into.

 

"Hey Gaz, when did you start going here?" Iggens asked, draping an arm over my shoulder. At that moment, I really wished I was taller than 5 foot, so assholes like Iggens wouldn't be able to do that anymore. I sneered and dug my nails harshly into his wrist. He yelled in pain and pulled back, inspecting the bleeding wounds on this arm. He looked back at me with an incredulous look in his eyes, like he couldn't believe I had done that. I narrowed my eyes at him and bared my teeth.

 

"Don't **ever** touch me, Iggens. Next time it'll be your face!" I hissed dangerously. He said nothing in reply but went back to his seat and I took a seat as far away from him as possible. English was boring-as much as I loved reading, I wasn't exactly crazy about reading and writing on a subject that didn't interest me. If it wasn't Sci-fi or fantasy, I wouldn't read it on my own time. My next class was art, which I really enjoyed considering we were left to our own devices and could draw whatever we liked. Before I knew it, lunch was next and I was dreading it, knowing I would have to spend time with Dib and his freakish friends. I wandered around the cafeteria for a while before I spotted anyone I knew. But the fact that it was Zim made it an irrelevant find, and I didn't even bother to address him when we made eye contact in passing. He just looked extremely confused to see me here and was about to say something when I felt somebody squeeze my shoulder. I turn around to see Dib behind me with a smile. I didn't smile back and he knew something was up.

 

"Did you seriously find someone you loath already? I think this is a new record." Dib said, looking past me once he noticed that we were standing near Zim. My brother narrowed his eyes at the alien but said nothing and guided me to a table in the back of the cafeteria.

 

"I didn't know _Iggens_ was going here." I growled, sitting down at the table of geeks. Dib raised an eyebrow at this.

 

"You still hate that kid?" He asked with a laugh. I frowned at him and crossed my arms.

 

"I'm surprised you don't hate him too. With how protective you are, I'd figure you'd wanna kill any twerp who was stupid enough to harass me on a weekly basis." I pointed out, taking my GS3 out of my bag. I guess if this is the company I had to keep during lunch, I should get back into the habit of ignoring my surroundings and kill vampire piggies instead. I felt Dib shrug in his seat next to me.

 

"I don't like him, but I know that you're more than capable of taking care of him yourself. He's not a threat in my book." He explained, taking a bite of the turkey sandwich I had packed. Poor bastard couldn't even make a sandwich without somehow managing to catch the kitchen on fire, and the school lunches were toxic. So that left the job of packing lunches to me.

 

"And yet, you think of a snowflake like Oliver as a threat." I counted, glaring at the screen in my hands.

 

"He *is* a threat. To your purity, and it's my job to-" before he could even finish the thought, I had knocked him out of his seat with one, swift punch the jaw. I rested my high heel clad foot on his chest for dramatic effect.

 

"Dib, if you ever say something that stupid in public again, I'll cut your tongue out." I snarled, adding painful pressure to where I was stepping. "And for the record, you're two years too late to be worried about my purity." I quipped, walking off just as the passing period bell rang. My next class was applied technology and engineering. I had always had a knack for building and fixing things. My most impressive creation so far are the security dolls I made when I was eleven. I've upgraded them since then, of course. I had to, since Dib had figured out how to get past them more than once. I was also pretty good at figuring out how to use things. I think the trickiest thing I'd ever had to figure out was one of Zim's escape pods. I couldn't read any of the writing that would have helped me pilot the small vessel but I had the controls down within seconds. I chalked that up to all of the games I played that didn't have walk-throughs to show me what controlled which action. The class was just an assessment of my skills so far and the real work would begin tomorrow. My sixth period was anatomy, which made me pretty happy. I may not like other humans, but I _did_ like looking at their insides. As I walked into the class, I was very tempted to just turn around and leave the school entirely. Sitting at the far right side of the classroom in the front row was **fucking Iggens**. I glared at the boy, but opted to find the teacher for the moment. I introduced myself to him and had to wait on him until the bell rang and everyone was in their assigned seats.

 

"Alright, let's find you a seat." The man droned, glancing over the seating chart attached to his clipboard. I looked up at the class, surveying the seating arrangements for myself. When my eyes inevitably reached Iggens' table, he smiled widely and pushed the boy sitting next to him out of his chair. He patted the seat and nodded in my direction, to which I shook my head vigorously. I was seriously starting to think this kid had the memory span of a goldfish. I scanned the room once again for any other vacant spots when a fleck of green caught my eye. I focused my attention on the empty seat next to the invader and realized it was my only other option. Maybe if I didn't talk to him, he wouldn't talk to me either and he would just leave me alone.

 

"Looks like there's an open seat next to Zim, and one next to-" I didn't stick around to hear him say the rest, darting to the open seat in the back of the class. I refused to acknowledge the existence of the alien next to me as I sat down and simply payed attention to the lesson. It was an impossible feat it seemed, because I could feel Zim staring at me for the entire class, and though I was able to recognize him, he looked different from how he did in middle skool. He was much taller now, which was a surprise, and I could tell he was certainly taller than _me_. His disguise wasn't too much different from the one he had arrived on Earth in, but he had a new, more realistic wig to replace the ridiculous bouffant-banged monstrosity he once wore. The contacts in his eyes were a bit different too, more detailed and believable, though his eyes were still inhumanly large. I was thankful I didn't have to stare at him for more than a second to notice all of this, otherwise it would have been pretty obvious that I was thinking about him and his foreign appearance. These new observations kept me occupied for most of the period, and I had to curse myself for letting my mind stray from the lesson. As soon as the bell rang, I got out of that classroom as fast as I could and went down to the lunchroom.

 

It was my final period of the day, and it was intended for studying. But I had nothing to do, so I just played on my GS3. When it was 2:30, I got a text from Oliver, saying he was let out for the rest of the day and would be coming by to walk me home. I smiled a bit at the text and continued to waste time until it was three and the bell dismissed the school. I pulled my backpack on and made my way to the front of the school, having to get through a sea of bodies just to reach the doors. Once I squeezed my way out the door, I headed down to the flagpole, where I told Oliver I would be waiting. As I waited, several people passed me whispering to each other as the did. I frowned, rumors already? I rolled my eyes indifferently and ignored the murmuring. Dib eventually turned up and asked if I wanted a ride. I declined and told him that Oliver was coming to walk me home. He also tried to apologize for earlier but I dismissed it, not really in the mood for hearing his voice. Once he was gone, I was alone for a while longer before I saw a familiar figure appear at the edge of the parking lot. I tried not to smile, I really did, but this kid just made me...happy. When I was within arms reach, he picked me up in a hug, spinning me around. I narrowed my eyes at him angrily, and when he noticed my irritation, he set me down.

 

"Sorry, I just missed you." He cooed, giving my lips a peck. I shook my head in disapproval and took his hand in mine.

 

"You just saw me yesterday, nerd. How could you miss me already?" I posed skeptically while we walked away from the school. Oliver shrugged and just smiled at me.

 

"I'm just used to seeing you everyday at school, so it was kinda lonely today." He replied, wrapping an arm around my waist. I grunted in response, not liking the weird feeling in the pit of my stomach. Oliver was acting the same as he does everyday, but something was off and I couldn't say exactly what it was. I had been feeling this for about a month now, and it made it hard for me to be around him. He was hiding something, and I'm not sure I really want to know what it is.

 

**Zim's POV**

 

I watched curiously as Dib's scary sister walked away with the Earth-male. Why wasn't she mutilating him for touching her in such love-sicky ways? How come she didn't abuse him like every other human around her? What made that boy special? I've seen plenty of filthy couples throughout school, but how could the she-devil fall into the trap of "love" like all the other dirt-children? It was certainly a curious development that I could tease her about the next time I saw her.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for the very abrupt end to the chapter, I just couldn't get the flow right on this one :/ hope you guys enjoy regardless.


	5. The Pact

**Chapter 4**

* * *

_Hello again, friend of a friend_  
_I knew you when_  
_Our common goal was waiting for the world to end_  
_Now that the truth is just a rule that you can bend_  
_You crack the whip_  
_Shape-shift and trick_  
_The past again_  
_~Black Sheep by Metric~_

* * *

It had been a week since I had started at my new school, and I was beginning to get into the swing of things. I had learned in that short time how to manipulate my teachers and their fears so they wouldn't talk to me or call on my during class unless it involved my grade. And even though things were going well in my classes grade wise, I still had to avoid a couple of parasites; Zim and Iggens. Iggens wasn't anything new, I'd been dealing with him since middle school. Zim was another story, though. I'd never had to deal with him directly unless it was when I was getting my brother out of trouble. But now, Zim was asking me stupid, personal questions, like who I was talking to and holding hands with after school everyday. I didn't bother answering, he could figure it out for himself. Or better yet, not figure it out at all. I almost wanted to answer is moronic questions just to get him out of my hair, but something told me that would only make things worse. I sighed discontentedly as I slid into my seat next to Zim that day in anatomy. He finally seemed to take the hint and was no longer asking me questions, at least not during class. But his irritation showed in his body language and on his face. It made me kinda laugh every now and again to see him so worked up over nothing.

 

"Today class, we will be getting into pairs for a project. You will all have to do one on a different system in the body. The system will be assigned to you and your partner." The teacher began with a smile, but rolled his eyes at everyone's obvious reluctance. The class started to chatter and argue that this was a stupid assignment and the teacher waited a moment before speaking over the noisy teens. "At least you get to choose your partners, be thankful for that." The class cheered, and everyone immediately found their friends to partner with. I saw Iggens leave his seat and begin to make his way to the back of the class were I sat with that cocky grin on his ugly face. My hands balled into fists as he approached, growling in irritation from just having to look at him. When he reached my table, he flashed his crooked teeth and leaned over the table top in my direction.

 

"So, Gaz, you got a partner?" He inquired with a smirk, wiggling his eyebrows suggestively. My eye twitched in annoyance but I soon regained my composer.

 

"First of all, I don't want to have anything to do with you. I've told you so countless times, yet, here you are, bugging the shit out of me. I would rather work on the project alone than be stuck doing it with you. And secondly, I already have a partner." I growled bitterly, motioning to Zim with my thumb. The alien looked at me questioning but said nothing in protest. Iggens sighed, dejected.

 

"Ah, well. Maybe next time, cutie." He replied with a wink and sauntered away. It took all of my self control not to vault myself over the table and strangle the life out of his fat neck. I rested my forehead against my hand with a sigh of exhaustion. Dealing with Iggens constantly drained me of my self control, patients, and energy. After a moment, I sat up straight and addressed Zim.

 

"Guess _we're_ stuck together now." I commented, looking forward as I did. I felt the invader's gaze shift to look at me.

 

"Huh? Oh, Zim had assumed you'd only said that to rid yourself of the pudgy Earth-worm's presence." He answered back casually. I smiled wryly.

 

"Originally, yes. That's also why I chose to sit next to you for the rest of the semester. But considering neither of us really know or talk to anyone else in the class, I figured you wouldn't mind actually being partners." I told him plainly. He shrugged, twirling a pencil between his three digits absently.

 

"I suppose I can tolerate it." He muttered, uninterested. My eyebrows creased in agitation.

 

"You say that like you have a choice." I grumbled, glaring slightly at the green idiot. The Irken didn't bother replying as we were both handed a sheet of paper by the teacher. I raised a brow at the header at the top of the paper and cursed under my breath. "He couldn't possibly have picked a worse system to assign to an alien." I remarked, half amused, half irritated. Zim looked back at me, confused.

 

"Eh?" I rolled my eyes and handed the paper to him.

 

"We have to do our project on the female reproductive system." I stated, folding my arms over my chest. The invader quirked a brow questioningly, reading over the sheet.

 

"So?" He asked, his eyes flicking over to me as he set the paper down on the table. I pulled my textbook out of my bag and flipped to the reproductive organs of a woman.

 

"Can you even tell me what this is called?" I challenged, showing him a diagram of the vulva. His jaw dropped in horror and he shielded his eyes with an arm.

 

"GETTHATFILTHOUTTAMYFACE!" He screeched, smacking the book out of my hand and sending it flying into some kid's head. The unlucky student whimpered on the floor in pain, muttering "Why?". I turned back to Zim with an unimpressed expression on my face.

 

"You know, if you'd only applied yourself and done the work your classes gave you, you could've taken the planet over a long time ago." I commented, shoving a class copy of the textbook into my bag since _my_ copy was causing someone agony at the moment.

 

"What are you talking about, worm-baby?" He asked, only half listening. I sighed in agitation.

 

"To take over this planet isn't that hard, Zim. I'm sure even _you_ have noticed how stupid most of the people on this planet are. The fact alone that you haven't been caught is just insane. And on top of that, the education system is giving _all_ of the information you would need to place the planet under your boot." I replied, resting my chin on my hand. Zim looked at me warily.

 

"Why are you telling Zim this?" He inquired, glaring suspiciously at me. I shrugged.

 

"Maybe I'm just tired of waiting for the world to end." I said offhand. There was a short pause before Zim spoke.

 

"And...you're saying you'd be willing to assist Zim?" The invader assumed. I smiled but shook my head.

 

"No, I'm just pointing you in the right direction if you want your mission to be successful." I told him, finally bothering to look back at him. He looked intrigued but on guard.

 

"What do I have to do?" He asked, leaning over towards my side of the table. I rolled my eyes before answering.

 

"Well, it wouldn't hurt to actually pay attention in anatomy, history too. At least then you'll have knowledge of how primitive our fighting techniques are as well as the weapons we use. You also have to take your own weaknesses into account-"

 

"Silly dirty-child, Zim has no weaknesses." The alien boasted with pride. I raised a skeptical brow.

 

"Yeah well, if the rest of your race is as intolerant of water as you are," He shivered at the mention of the acidic liquid. "Then you won't be able to attack directly. I mean, the planet is 2/3 water. You guys will get creamed if you don't develop a careful, well thought out plan." Zim seemed to ponder this with a hum in his throat. "Either you need to pay attention and learn something, or you need a human ally to teach you these things." I continued, paying more attention to my work now.

 

"You can teach me then, Gaz-human." He concluded with a crooked grin. My brows pulled together in irritation as I looked up at Zim.

 

"You're joking. Why would _I_ of all people help you?" I inquired seriously. How could this moron think that I, or anyone else in their right mind would help him destroy this planet?

 

"You obviously hate everyone here, it would be in your own benefit to aid me." He replied with what I assumed was a triumphant look. I gave a dry laugh.

 

"Yeah, I'll help you destroy the planet, and be stuck on it while it happens? No thanks." I growled, going back to my paper. Zim didn't have a rebuttal for that and stayed quiet. I continued to think it over in my head. It was true that I would be putting myself in danger, not to mention Dib and my dad. But I was already thinking of a few ways for us to avoid being here when the invasion begins. Maybe I _could_ help Zim with his mission, maybe I could get rid of the human race, and still have my brother and father safe. The bell for passing period rang and I grabbed my things, standing from my seat. I waited by the door for a moment while Zim gathered his things. When he reached the door, I stopped him, and pulled him down to my level.

 

"I'll consider helping you, but just know, you'll have to give me something worth my while." I said quietly, walking off towards the lunch room. Zim walked behind me quietly, neglecting whatever class it was that he had to go to. He sat across from me at my table while I kicked my feet up, playing my GameSlave.

 

"What is it that the Gaz-beast would like in return for her assistance?" Zim inquired, folding his hands together. I glanced up at him from my game and smirked.

 

"I don't know. Like I said, I'll consider helping you. I didn't say I would _definitely_ help you. I haven't even thought of anything as a quid pro quo yet. I'll let you know when I figure it out." I told him, focusing back on my handheld. "But we _do_ need to work on teaching you about the system we have to do for anatomy." I countered, setting my game down to speak with the invader directly. His brow furrowed in confusion.

 

"What do you mean?" He asked, genuinely lost. I sighed impatiently at his stupidity.

 

"You obviously know nothing about the female reproductive system, or any human body system for that matter. So we'll have to teach you the material if we want to get a good grade on this project." I explained. The Irken chuckled and wiped a tear from his eye for dramatic effect.

 

"Zim has no use for your silly pig-organs or their functions." He laughed, leaning towards me.

 

"Well, whether you have a need for that knowledge or not, you're going to learn it. Because I'm not going to get an F on this project due to your stubbornness." I hissed, narrowing my eyes at him. "You might actually learn something useful about humans in the process too." I added, knowing it might be the only way to catch his attention. And I was right, the Irken visibly perked up, intrigued when I spoke.

 

"What kind of useful things?" Zim prodded, gazing at me warily, like he didn't trust me. I wouldn't trust me either to be honest.

 

"I'm sure you understand the best way to destroy your enemy is to understand them and know them inside and out. If you learn about human anatomy, you'll be able to better know the enemy, and you'll have a better chance at taking them down quickly. Humans have plenty of bodily weaknesses, but you won't know about them if you don't pay attention." I threatened with a mild anger in my voice. The alien sat back in his seat, crossing his arms in a stubborn display.

 

"Fine, Zim will pay attention in class and take your offered tutoring, but you must hold up your side of the bargain." The invader growled back grudgingly. I smiled at him in satisfaction.

 

"I always keep my word." I assured him, going back to my game. I had no idea what I would ask for in return, but I knew it would be something good.


	6. Don't Keep Me Waiting

**Chapter 4**

* * *

_How can I decide what's right_  
_When you're clouding up my mind?_  
_I can't win your losing fight all the time_  
_Nor can I ever own what's mine_  
_When you're always taking sides_  
_But you won't take away my pride_  
_No not this time_  
_Not this time_  
_~Decode - Paramore~_

* * *

**The next day...**

* * *

"Has the Gaz-beast decided what she would like in exchange for her help?" Zim inquired hopefully. I growled in irritation and bared my teeth angrily at the green moron.

 

"For the ninth fucking time, Zim, no! I haven't thought of anything yet." I yelled back, wishing the Irken would just piss off. I walked briskly to my third period with Zim not far behind. It had been like this since I got to school this morning, he'd been on my ass nonstop about our agreement. How was I supposed come up with something I thought was worth the destruction of my entire planet and race? The fact that I was even considering it in the first place was bad enough, but now I had to think of something that I would get in _return_. I didn't really _want_ anything from him, but it's not like I would help him without getting something in return, that would be bad for my image. However, Zim didn't seem to get the message and followed me to my classes at every passing period. Lunch was quite possibly the worst though, because I was trapped in the lunchroom with him and I had no choice but to ride it out until the bell rang. By the end of our shared anatomy class, I had reached my wits end and any patience I might have had before was gone.

 

"Zim," I growled at the relentless invader. He rose a brow, questioning me. "You need to shut up already about me helping you, alrighty? I haven't even said that I would help you, I only told you that I would think about it! So would you just back off?" I demanded, glaring up at him. He didn't react at first, but after a moment he smiled. It wasn't the good kind of smile, though. It was the kind of smile that was full of evil and malicious intent, the kind you wouldn't want to see aimed at you. Zim shoved me into a row of lockers, a murderous and prideful look on his stupid green face. His hand slid up my neck, the sharp nail of his thumb digging into my skin, preventing me from moving. He pressed down hard enough to draw blood, earning a roar of outrage from me. He smiled cruelly down at me and kept me from struggling out of his hold.

 

"You ought to know better than to keep someone waiting, especially someone who could kill you in an instant-" I let out a snarl, cutting his speech short. I shot my hand up, grabbing hold of one of his antennae from under his wig. He made a noise of surprise and pain, one I'd never heard before as he leaned over me, trying to keep me from pulling the thin appendage off altogether. I glared up at the invader, matching his own hateful look.

 

"Let's get one thing straight, Zim. You don't threaten me, _ever_. If you do it again, I'll crush you like a roach under my boot." I sneered, releasing his antenna and gave him a forceful punch to the gut before walking away. The Irken groaned, doubling over in pain.

 

"My squeedlyspooch..." He cursed under his breath. I quirked a brow at this while I walked away from him. Squeedlyspooch? I'd heard that word before in middle skool. What exactly was a squeedlyspooch, anyway? That's when it hit me, I knew what I wanted in return for helping Zim, and it was definitely going to piss him off. I grinned to myself, it was perfect.

 

Zim didn't bother me for the rest of the day after that confrontation. I was glad he had given me a chance to assert my dominance over him, to prove that I could be a threat to him and his mission if I chose to be.

 

Oliver walked me home as usually, going on about the band competition he had the week before. It was usually like this, him rattling off about something, and me just listening, contributing words to the "conversation" only when I had to. I guess it was just habit to be quiet and tune people out after years of listening of Dib blabber on about the supernatural. _How had I managed not to kill him back then?_ I smiled briefly, shaking the thought from my head, and continued to "listen" to Oliver. I left him on my doorstep with a kiss before sealing myself away inside. I sighed to myself in relief, home at last. While I may not have liked where my mind wandered when I was alone, I could always block it out with music while I did my homework. I popped my ear buds in and set up at the kitchen table. I didn't get too far into my homework before becoming bored and decided to do something else. I pulled out a piece of paper and my anatomy textbook, writing down topics to go over with my hopelessly stupid partner. I looked up when I heard the front door open. Dib walked in, covered in dirt and a couple of scratches. I raised a brow at him questioningly as he approached the kitchen table, setting a box of pizza in the center. I looked back up at my brother.

 

"What's the occasion?" I asked, opening the box and taking out a slice. Dib stared at me, confused.

 

"Huh?"

 

"You only get pizza for dinner when you've found something on you investigations, so what did you find?" I inquired casually. Dib's face brightened instantly as he took the seat across from me.

 

"Well, the guys and I were checking out these supposed jackalope burrows, right? And we were about twenty feet in the tunnels when-" I stopped listening at that point but maintained eye contact and pretended to be interested. Dib didn't really talk to the members of the paranormal club outside of school or investigations, so he didn't exactly have anyone to tell these things to. It's not like my dad would listen to Dib's ramblings, if he was ever here in person, that is. So that left me, and I felt in a small way, I owed it to my brother to at least let him rant to me about his passion. I learned quickly though not to contribute any opinions to the "conversation" Because he would often try to convince me to "follow in his foot steps". And the answer everytime would be no. I may know about the paranormal, and believe in some of it from first hand encounters, but I wasn't about to get myself branded as crazy by the rest of society. I was already labeled as "frightening" and "violent", I didn't need "crazy" added to the list. When Dib had finally finished his nearly hour long story, I spoke up.

 

"I was thinking about having Pepito stay the night." I mentioned casually. Dib shrugged, chewing on his pizza and swallowing.

 

"You know what the rules are-if he's staying the night he needs to change his gender." Dib stated plainly, taking another bite of his dinner. I growled in annoyance when he reminded me of the catch.

 

"Dib, nothing is going to happen between us." I reasoned, glaring over the table at my big-headed brother. He raised a brow at me.

 

"Yeah? And how do _I_ know that?" He challenged, narrowing his own eyes at me. I gritted my teeth in anger.

 

"I have a _boyfriend_ , for starters. And Pepito may be the spawn of Satan, but he isn't stupid enough to take advantage of my trust. Lastly, I have no interest in him like that, whatsoever." I countered, knowing I had him cornered. His determination didn't waver and I almost screamed at him out of frustration, but I held it in.

 

"I'm not budging on this one, Gaz. He has to change his gender when he's staying the night, end of story." He finalized. I stood from the table with a scowl.

 

"Whatever." I dismissed, walking up to my room. I sat down in my desk chair and pulled out my phone.

 

_'I'm bored, come over.'_ I hit send and waited for Pepito to respond. With a beep, a message appeared under what I had sent.

 

' _Hm, are you sure you don't just miss me?'_ I frowned and replied.

 

_'I'm sure. Just come over okay?'_ My phone beeped again.

 

_'Do I have to...do the thing...?'_ I looked at the message, confused for a moment before it clicked in my head.

 

_'Yeah, sorry. Dib's rules.'_ I texted back.

 

_'At this point, I think he just likes me more with breasts.'_ I grinned down at my phone.

 

_'With as weird as my brother is, that wouldn't surprise me. But seriously, come over.'_ I persisted.

 

_'Alright, I'll be over soon, I have to get my stuff.'_ I just replied with an okay and put my phone on my desk. I tidied up my room a bit and pondered if my brother really **did** like Pepito better in his female form. I chuckled at the thought, but it wasn't that far fetched. In all honesty, Pepito wasn't very attractive, and I wouldn't expect him to be given his background. But his female form was considerably less repulsive, I might even dare to say he was somewhat pretty as a girl. But it certainly made everything confusing because I was so used to him being a male entity. A tap on my shoulder scared me out of my thoughts as I made my bed. I spun around and growled up at a very satisfied looking Pepito.

 

"You couldn't just use the door?" I snapped, crossing my arms over my chest. He chuckled and rubbed my arm in a poor attempt to soothe my anger.

 

"Now, where would be the fun in that, _mi amigo_?" He countered, giving a smug smile. I continued to glare, unimpressed. He rolled his eyes in response and sat on my bed, messing up the comforter I had just smoothed out.

 

"Better change into you're lady form before Dib catches on that you're here." I grumbled, going over to my dresser. I pulled out a comfortable top and pair of pj pants, going into the bathroom to change. When I came back out, Pepito had changed his form and sat with his slender legs crossed. I raised a brow questioningly when I noticed the size of his chest.

 

"Was that an accident, or were you trying for Bay Watch?" I quipped, taking a seat at the head of my bed. My companion chuckled and leaned back on his hands.

 

"That's _exactamente_ what I was going for. Think it'll be enough to freak out your _hermano_?" He joked, raising a brow. I struggled not to laugh at how his voice hadn't changed to accommodate his new form.

 

"Yeah, Dib'll just _love_ you." I snickered, poking at one of the ridiculously oversized breasts. Pepito gave a pout and his bust shrunk to a more reasonable size.

 

"So how are things at the new school? Any new idiots to torture?" He asked, changing the subject to something less disturbing. I sighed and gave a shrug, falling back onto my pillows.

 

"They're alright, I suppose. My classes are more stimulating and the students and faculty seem to be afraid of me, which is great. But guess who just so happens to go to this school?" I challenged with a less than pleased tone of voice. Pepito raised his brows in intrigue and pondered for a moment. Suddenly he smiled, and narrowed his eyes at me.

 

"It's fucking Iggens." We said simultaneously. My friend bent over himself, howling with laughter and I sat up, glaring at the side of his face.

 

"Oh, that's just too _bueno_!" He wheezed, unable to control himself.

 

"Laugh it up, jackass. At least I'm not cross dressing, unlike _somebody_." I jeered, kicking him in the shoulder from where I sat. Pepito stuck his tongue out at me in retaliation and I mimicked his actions.

 

"How are things at the other school? Are you getting along without me?" I teased, giving a smug smile as I crossed my arms. The demon frowned a bit but nodded.

 

"I guess, everything is so _aburrido_ without you there." He murmured, looking as sad as he did the day I'd told him I was switching schools. I groaned in annoyance and got up on my knees, coming over to Pepito. I wrapped my arms tightly around his frail middle, resting my head against his shoulder. He stiffened in surprise, unsure how to react.

 

"Just this once, I'll let you hug me." I groused, already feeling uncomfortable from the physical contact. He wound his arms around me in return, and after a second, it didn't feel so weird anymore. I pulled away once it got super awkward for me and gave a small smile. Pepito looked about ready to cry though and I groaned again.

 

"Dammit, you made it weird." I growled, tossing him a box of tissues. Hopefully if he had these, he wouldn't get blood on my comforter. After he finished being a big weenie, we started talking again. We talked about art and music, as well as how my boyfriend was doing without me.

 

"He seems to be fine. At first he looked a little perdido, but by the second day, he'd found his old click and now he's doing better." Pepito informed me. My brow furrowed in confusion for a moment.

 

"Old click?" I repeated, not sure what my friend meant.

 

"The people he hung out with before you two started dating. Nick, Keef, Zita, Torque." He clarified casually. I narrowed my eyes when I heard the name Zita. She and Oliver and been friends since freshman year and I didn't like her one bit. Not only was I very possessive of Oliver, but I knew for a fact that she had a thing for him. He knew how jealous I could be, and shortly after we started dating, he cut ties with her. But it seemed now that I wasn't there to constantly watch him, they were talking again. I didn't like the way this made me feel, it was like I was slowly losing control over my life, like something bad was going to happen if this continued. That night, I lay awake in my bed, staring at the ceiling and doing what I do best-over thinking. Something didn't feel right in my stomach, and I didn't want to know what.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey guys, hope you liked this chapter. In other fics, I've seen people react negatively to Gaz being abusive to other characters, mostly Dib. And in this case it would be Zim who is her punching bag. But it won't be that way forever, let's hope she warms up to him a little and quits being such a meany. :p


	7. Partners In Crime

* * *

**Chapter 6**

* * *

_Take a little walk to the edge of town_  
_and go across the tracks_  
_Where the viaduct looms,_  
_like a bird of doom_  
_As it shifts and cracks_  
_Where secrets lie in the border fires,_  
_in the humming wires_  
_Hey man, you know_  
_you're never coming back_  
_~Red Right Hand --- Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds~_

* * *

**Monday**

* * *

  
  
That Monday, I went over to Zim's base. I'd finally thought of my counter offer and though I felt he may refuse, it was worth a shot. I glared at the stupid lawn gnomes that followed me as I walked up to the door. I rang the doorbell and waited, crossing my arms. The door flung open to reveal Gir in his green dog suit and I let out an irritated sigh. It was almost disappointing that no one but Dib and I saw Zim for what he really was. Oh well, just another reason to add to the list of why I hate humanity. The disguised robot was still standing in the doorway staring blankly up at me. I felt uncomfortable by this and shifted my weight awkwardly. "Um...hi. Is Zim home?" I asked, raising a brow. I didn't get a reply, he just pulled out a Suck-Monkey and proceeded to drink it obnoxiously loud. Okay, I guess this guy isn't gonna help me out, not that I really expected him to. I leaned forward, sticking my head inside the house. "Zim?" I called, but I was left with no answer. I growled in annoyance and took a few steps into the house. I could see Gir's eyes glow red under the fabric of his disguise and he threw his Suck-Monkey to the ground.

  
"INTRUDER!" He bellowed, rocketing towards me. My eyes widened in surprise as the robot collided with my stomach, knocking me back out of the house. I sat up and grabbed the pint-sized robot, holding him at arms length.

  
"You little shit!" I hissed through clenched teeth, shaking him repeatedly. When I stopped he just stared at me like before.

  
"Yoooooooz preeeeeeety, scary lady!" He shrieked gleefully, making me wince. I growled at him and threw him through the doorway as hard as I could. Gir soared through the air with a _'weeeeeeeeee!'_ Until he hit the back wall and fell to the floor with a clang. "I'm oooooooookaaaaay!" He chirped, standing up and running off to some other part of the house. Just as I pulled myself to my feet, I saw Zim rising out of a toilet, which was in the kitchen for some reason.

  
"Ah, Gaz-beast, have you finally agreed to teach Zim the humans' many weaknesses?" He greeted, stepping over Gir's spilt drink. I quirked a brow at him questioningly.

  
"The way I remember it, I was supposed to be teaching you anatomy. But sure, weaknesses, how to properly act like a human, all that fun stuff. But I've made my mind up on what I want in exchange for this valuable information." I began, placing my hands behind my back. Zim narrowed his eyes at me warily.

  
"What is it?" He asked, looking at me suspiciously.

  
  
"I know as much about you as you know about humans. So I want you to teach me about yourself and your planet." I replied matter-of-factly. The alien gave me and incredulous look and chuckled.

  
  
"You truly are an idiot if you think Zim would give away Irken secrets to a disgusting dirt child like you." He sneered, crossing his arms defiantly. I glared at the green moron.

  
  
"First of all, rude. And second, I'm not asking for secrets, Zim. Just basic information on what your planet and culture are like, as well as a short lesson about your own freaky alien anatomy." I corrected, poking him in the chest. He glared down at me pointedly.

  
  
"How does Zim know you won't betray this knowledge to your hippo-headed brother?" I choked back a laugh at his strange way of addressing my brother's large head.

  
  
"Because I'm doing this out of my own curiosity. I may be his sister, but unless it's life or death, I'm not gonna go out of my way to help him." I argued, placing a hand on my hip. Zim didn't answer right away, thinking.

  
  
"Didn't curiosity terminate the feline.....or something?" He inquired, probably not even knowing what the expression was supposed to mean.

  
  
"Killed the cat is the proper phrasing, you weirdo. Curiosity killed the cat, but satisfaction brought it back." Zim pondered this for a minute before nodding. "So, do we have a deal?" I inquired, extending my hand out for him to shake. He stared at it for a moment, one eye narrowed and the other wide open in that stupid confused expression. You know the one. Finally, his glove clad hand grabbed mine and shook it.

  
  
"Yes yes, we have a deal. Now, get inside so we may begin." He said impatiently, pulling me inside a bit in his haste. I narrowed my eyes at the alien as a warning, to which he wordlessly let go of me and walked inside his base. I continued to glare at him as I entered the vaguely familiar living room, closing the front door behind me. I stood, somewhat uncomfortable in the center of the room with my arms crossed over my chest. It'd been a long time since I'd last been here, but it still looked exactly the same. Same purple couch, same flying-saucer wallpaper, same creepy monkey painting.

  
  
"So, what'd you wanna start with first?" I questioned, going over to sit on the odd, purple couch. Zim whipped around with a questioning look on his features...or lack thereof, rather.

  
  
"Eh?" Was his irritatingly short response. I closed my eyes for a moment, trying to resist the urge to punch that idiot in the throat.

  
  
"What would you like to learn first, Zim?" I restated calmly. He blinked, seemingly taken aback by the question and I waited for a proper answer.

  
  
"Uh, well, I.....um--"

  
  
"You really didn't think this through, did you?" I accused, raising a brow at the invader. He shrugged.

  
  
"Zim did not think you would agree to teach him. He had nothing to offer that would interest the Dib-sister." He replied, rubbing the back of his neck sheepishly.

  
  
"Whatever," I mumbled, standing to take my backpack off and dig through it. I pulled out my anatomy book and handed it to the freak in front of me. "I think the best way to do this is to read this together and I can answer any questions or explain things you'd like me to." The Irken nodded in agreement.

  
  
"Yes, that will be satisfactory, for the most part." He replied curtly, taking a seat on the couch. My brow furrowed slightly, for the most part? What does he mean by that, I wondered. Zim opened the anatomy book to a random page and immediately began dry heaving. I rolled my eyes and snatched the book from the drama queen and sat next to him with a frown.

  
  
"Look, if you can't keep your blatant disgust to a minimum, I'm not going to teach you. I get that this can be pretty gross, but you've gotta get over it if you want to retain any information." I threatened, opening the book to a diagram of a human body and it's organs. "You remember when you swallowed all those organs in an attempt to seem more human?" I asked, my lips turning up only slightly at the memory of his stupidity. Zim stuck out his tongue and shivered in disgust. "If you can ingest them, then you at least look at them and learn their functions." I assured him, placing the book in his lap. He sneered and shut it quickly with a shake of his head.

  
  
"I'd rather not." He argued, crossing his arms. I growled at the alien in agitation. I sighed to myself, thinking of some way to get him interested. I almost smiled at the sentence that popped into my head.

  
  
"You know, there are a few organs in the human body, that if you destroy or even damage them, you can kill the person." I announced slyly, resisting a grin. I could almost see his antennae perk up under his wig with intrigue. He turned his full attention to me after that and I couldn't help but smile this time.

  
  
"Go on...." He coaxed, raising a nonexistent brow.

  
  
"I'd love to, but only if you promise to learn about the other organs too. I'm not gonna fail this project just because you couldn't do your part." I countered, knowing he most likely wouldn't argue. He sucked his teeth and rolled his fake blue eyes.

  
  
"Fine, Zim will learn of these horrid, stink-pig organs, if only to know the humans' weaknesses." He amended.

  
  
"Alright. First things first, the heart and brain. The heart is an organ located inside the left side of the ribcage." I began, pointing at it in the book and involuntarily placing a hand over my heart. I flipped to another page with a more detailed drawing of the heart. I gave the book back to Zim momentarily so he could look at it more closely. "It's job it to pump blood through the body. Damage or removal can cause instant death. Fun fact; if you sever the aorta, a person can bleed out and die in three seconds." I continued, pointing to the large, artery that had three other arteries extending from it. The invader grinned widely at my words and chuckled.

  
  
"That is very helpful information, Gaz-beast." He confirmed, looking at me for a short moment. I glowered at him and slugged him in the arm.

  
  
"It's just Gaz, idiot. Call me beast again and I'll show you what a _real_ beast looks like." I snarled, giving him my most intimidating glare. The alien said nothing in return, opting to pout and turn his attention back to the book. I allowed this to slide, and turned to another page with a diagram of a brain. "The brain is the most complex organ in the human body. Different parts of the brain are for different things, such as memory, speech, motor control, senses, as well as site. Truly, the body can continue to function without the brain, but only if medical care is administered beforehand. Without the brain, the rest of the body will shut down and die." I explained, pointing out the different cortex for each function. Zim studied the picture for a while, clearly interested in this specific organ.

  
  
"Hm, it is certainly something worth looking into." The Irken mused, a claw pressed against his chin. It went on this way for hours, covering not only organs and their functions, but the various systems that made up the human body as well as their purposes. The sun had long since set, and was replaced now by the moon. When I realized this, I pulled out my phone to check the time and swore under my breath.

  
  
"What is it?" Zim inquired, looking up from the textbook. I sighed as I  put my phone back in my pocket and stood.

  
  
"It's past my curfew. As much as I hate following Dib's stupid rules, I hate being grounded even more." I said with distaste. I hated doing what I was told by my brother, but I wasn't stupid, and I knew it was only because he cared. He cares too much, I thought as I grabbed my backpack, slinging it over my shoulder. "Keep reading, Zim. I'll be testing you on what you've learned tomorrow. Goodnight." I waved as I stepped out the front door.

  
  
"Goodnight, Gaz-human." He mumbled, lost in the text of the anatomy book. I closed the door and started my walk home. I really hope that idiot is smarter than he seems, otherwise, my grade is doomed.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey guys, hope you liked this chapter. It wasn't all that interesting but I had fun writing it. Let me know how I'm doing by the way, it's my first time writing Invader Zim fanfic, so I'm not sure if I'm writing the characters well.


	8. Three Strikes

**Chapter 7**

* * *

_She paints her fingers with a close precision_  
_He starts to notice empty bottles of gin_  
_And takes a moment to assess the sin_  
_She's paid for_

_A lonely speaker in a conversation_  
_Her words are swimming through his ears again_  
_There's nothing wrong with just a taste of what you've paid for_  
_~The Ballad Of Mona Lisa - Panic! At the Disco_

* * *

This day was not off to a good start. Everything seemed to be going fine, until our teacher actually started class.

"I have an announcement everybody!" She started out, cheerful as ever. Everyone groaned and rolled their eyes, earning a frown from our teacher. "Now, class, don't throw a fit so soon. You don't even know what I'm going to tell you." She said, wagging her finger at us in scolding. "As I was saying, I have an announcement. I have a fun little assignment for you all. Tonight, I want you guys to pick out a song for you to sing, because tomorrow everyone is required to audition for the fall musical." Groans and other sounds of protest rang throughout the auditorium and the teacher rolled her eyes. "This is mandatory for you all to pass, so don't think you can get out of it. You will be graded not on your ability to sing, but your performance." She continued. What's the difference, I asked myself, crossing my arms stubbornly. I didn't like performing in front of people, that's why I never auditioned for roles in the first place. But now I had to if I wanted to pass the stupid class. I stewed angrily for the rest of the period and the ones that followed

I didn't see Zim until lunch, and I was glad to see that now that our agreement was settled, he was no longer following me like a lost puppy dog. Oddly enough though, he greeted me with a knowing grin when I entered the cafeteria. I took a seat across from him at his deserted lunch table instead of going to sit with Dib like I was normally forced to.

"So, how did the studying go?" I asked, resting my chin on my hand. Zim puffed up a bit with pride and smirked at me.

"I believe it went very well. Zim is filled with the knowledge, so much knowledge!" He belted, making me flinch back a bit at the volume. I gave him a skeptical look and crossed my arms.

"I'm sure you are," I began. "Why don't we get started, then?" I suggested, raising a brow at the invader. He gave a nod of agreement and I pulled out a review sheet I had gotten from our anatomy teacher. It wasn't easy to get, either. I had to lie my ass off just to get it. I told him I needed it to teach Zim properly, which wasn't a lie. But when he asked why Zim wasn't able to just learn in class, I wasn't sure how to answer. I ended up just saying that I was required by law to do tutoring as a form of community service. I avoided having to go into detail about why I was given community service as a punishment and left as soon as he handed it over. I slid a clean copy across the table so Zim could read it. "Just answer these questions by matching up the letters to the definitions." I instructed, folding my hands together patiently. It didn't take long for the alien to finish and hand the sheet back to me. I went down the list and nodded approvingly, giving Zim a small smile.

"Are the answers correct, Gaz-beast?" He asked, trying to peer at his paper, like it held some sort of grade. I frowned at him and heaved a sigh.

"Yes, the answers are correct. Look, can we do something about this whole "Gaz-beast/Gaz-human" thing?" I requested, feeling annoyed by the odd suffixes he seemed to need to put at the end of my name.

"What do you mean?" He questioned, giving me a truly baffled expression. I sighed again.

"I don't really like being called a beast all the time, and I also don't need you to remind me that I'm human everytime we speak with one another." I elaborated. My partner didn't look any less confused.

"What would you like to be called, then?" The Irken inquired. I just shrugged and shook my head.

"Just call me Gaz. If you really have to put the suffix at the end, why don't you choose something a little less strange and offensive." I offered, pulling out my handheld as a distraction. I heard him give a "hm" noise while he mulled it over.

"Gaz-partner." He said suddenly, making me look up from my game. I gave Zim a confused look.

"What?" I asked, pausing my game. The invader smiled proudly and straightened a bit.

"You are Zim's partner, in science and in destroying this planet. So I will call you Gaz-partner from now on." He explained. I stared at him for a minute before going back to my game.

"Works for me." I muttered, no longer interested in talking. I was just about to beat the boss level when two hands suddenly covered my eyes from behind. I sneered angrily at the unapproved physical contact.

"Guess who?" A familiar voice cooed. I wasn't sure at first and growled out, "It better be Oliver, because if it's Dib, I'm gonna punch you." A chuckle sounded behind me and I knew for sure now that it was Oliver. I gave a small smile and cocked my head back to look up at him.

"What are you doing here?" I asked, raising a brow at him. He smiled and stroked my cheek softly.

"I came to see you since you said you wouldn't be able come see me." He replied sweetly, kissing my forehead. I scrunched up my face with a frown.

"Ew, don't be gross." I muttered, swatting his cheek lightly. He gave a pout and seemed to finally notice Zim sitting across from me, looking at me after a moment. "Right, you two don't know each other. Oliver, this is Zim, he's my science partner." I said, gesturing to the green 'kid'. "Zim, this is Oliver, my boyfriend." I explained, almost grinning at the look of realization on the Irken's face.

"Ah, Zim understands now. He _is_ your love-pig." Zim confirmed with a coarse smile. I rolled my eyes at the backwards idiom but nodded. Oliver grinned and looked back to me.

"Hey, I think I like that. I might start using it now." He joked, wrapping his arms around me. I gave a small laugh and smiled.

"I swear to God, Oliver, if you ever call me a pig, I'll gut you like a fish." I threatened half-heartedly. He just chuckled in response, not taking my words to heart.

"Well, I'll leave you alone. Knowing you, you're probably going to drill your poor partner to ensure your grade." Oliver teased, kissing my cheek affectionately before taking off. I watched him walk out of the lunch room, and once I was sure he was gone, I let my head bang against the table. At the sound of snickering, I lifted my gaze to Zim.

"What's so funny, space boy?" I snapped, narrowing my eyes at him. He gave a smug smile and crossed his arms over his chest.

"It's just amusing to see the demon-girl actually behaving like a _human_." He mocked with another rasping laugh. I growled in annoyance, my cheeks burning from embarrassment.

"Shut up, before I squash you like the bug you are!" I snarled, right before burying my face in my arms. I hoped he would drop it after that but he continued to prod at me.

"How come when you threaten him it seems less harsh? You say nasty things, but they're somehow less...threatening." He asked, looking genuinely interested. I peered at him from over my arms and sighed, sitting up straight again.

"Because I don't really mean it. Most of the time at least. I show my affection by gently bullying my loved ones." I explained with a slight frown. The invader nodded in understanding before an evil grin spread across his face. He leaned over the table towards me, still grinning in a sinister way.

"Does that mean Zim is a loved one too with all the bullying you put him through daily?" He pestered, knowing just how to irritate me beyond reason. I was more shocked than angry at his accusation, my mouth hanging open slightly. He just sat back and cackled wildly at my expression. Oh, wait, _there's_ the anger. I bared my teeth in fury and stood from my seat. I drew my fist back and punched Zim as hard as I could from across the table, right where his nose would be. The force knocked him out of his chair, sending him to the floor. I smiled, satisfied when I heard him begin to groan in pain. I walked around the table and kneeled down next to him while he clutched his face in pain.

"Does that answer your question, you creep?" I murmured quietly next to where his antennae were hidden under his wig. Without waiting for a response, I stood, grabbed my things, and walked out of the cafeteria. I'm lucky no one noticed, otherwise, I'm sure I would have gotten detention.

After school, I decided I wouldn't go see Zim to tutor him. I was still thoroughly annoyed by his antics at lunch. I waited where I always did for Oliver to meet me. No one stopped by to talk to me, not even Dib. He must have been in a meeting with that stupid paranormal club of his. And Zim likely didn't want to endure the same treatment he had been dealt earlier. I pushed off the flag pole when I caught sight of Oliver. I paused though, seeing someone with him. I narrowed my eyes to get a better look and recognized the other person as Zita. I knew she and Oliver were friends, but why were they walking together? Oliver waved to her goodbye and began to enter the student parking lot. I turned away, trying to pretend I hadn't seen anything despite the rage coursing through my body. By the time he reached me though I had gotten my anger in check and continued to act oblivious. Something was wrong about this, something was very, very wrong. I would have to wait and see for any further proof, lest I make an ass out of myself in front of Oliver. Regardless, I didn't appreciate him going behind my back like that.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> AN: Sorry for the shorter chapter, I kind of ran out of steam on this chapter. :/


	9. Music

* * *

_Short steps, deep breath_

_Everything is alright_  
_Chin up, I can't_  
_Step into the spotlight_  
_~Everything's Alright - To the Moon~_

* * *

The Next Day...

When the bell rang to let everyone out for school, I waited in the lunchroom for Zim to come find me.

"I'll be at your place in about an hour, I have stupid auditions for drama today." I groused as we left the cafeteria. Zim nodded and headed towards the exit while I walked in the direction of the auditorium. I took a seat next to the other theater students that had to suffer through this for a grade. Some of the kids weren't half bad, they could carry a note at least. Others though, they were total train wrecks-they were either too nervous to perform, or just didn't have a good singing voice. _This is gonna be terrible_ , I thought, pessimistic about the entire situation.

**Zim's POV**

Once I got out the doors of the school, a familiar and frightening scent hit me. _Rain_ , I thought with a scowl. It wasn't just a light drizzle, no, it was a downpour of the filthy liquid. I narrowed my eyes at the overcast sky. _Dammit, the one time I skip my paste bath, of course this had to happen._ It was just my luck. I growled and went back inside the school. The halls were empty, only a few students left roaming around for tutoring. I didn't have any choice but to wander around the building until, hopefully, the rain stopped. It felt like hours of boredom had passed when I finally reached the one place I had yet to wander through-the auditorium. The Gaz-beast was supposed to be in here, doing _something_ for her drama class. I peered inside, unsure if there was anyone still inside. But lo and behold, there were still people doing...whatever it is they were supposed to be doing. I sighed and walked inside, I had nothing better to do until the rain passed, so why not watch the silly hyoomans? I took a seat in the back row, ensuring that I would go unseen. Once settled in, I fixed my gaze on the empty stage. I heard someone call the Dib-sister's name and she climbed the stairs leading to the stage. I grinned a bit. _This should be interesting._

**Gaz's POV**

All too soon it was my turn, even if I _was_ the last one on the list. And though I was confident that I would do well enough, I still felt butterflies in my stomach. _Digest them_ , I told myself, not wanting to surrender to my nerves. I took a settling breath and stood, getting on the large stage. The lights practically blinded me, which calmed me for the most part, but I still had to sing in front of these people.

"Start whenever you're ready." My teacher said encouragingly. I fought the desire to glare at her and snarl, clenching my fists instead. I took another deep breath and started.

"Short steps, deep breath. Everything is alright. Chin up, I can't step into the spotlight. She said, 'I'm sad' somehow without any words. I just stood there, searching for an answer." I closed my eyes for a moment, trying to concentrate on not letting my voice crack or shake.

"When this world is no more, the moon is all we'll see. I'll ask you to fly away with me. Until the stars all fall down, they empty from the sky. But I don't mind. If you're with me, then everything's alright." I didn't wait for the required applause of my class and got down from the stage as soon as I finished. Everyone was a bit confused as to why I didn't stay on the stage for longer like the others had, but they didn't linger on it, packing up to leave.

"Great job everyone, you all get an A for your performances!" Our teacher called after us. I rolled my eyes, and felt a hand on my shoulder. I turned and glared at the student, recognizing him and some of his friends from my drama class, but I hadn't cared enough to learn their names. I raised a brow at them curiously, waiting for them to say something.

"Hey, you did really good up there!" He praised patting my back. My brow furrowed in confusion at his compliment and others joined in.

"Yeah, your voice is super pretty!" One girl piped up.

"You should tryout for real next time!" My eyes widened in surprise and I backed away from the group.

"Uh...thanks. I wouldn't want to be in the musical though, sorry." I dismissed with a tight-lipped smile. I turned, starting for the exit again and noticed a familiar figure in the back row. As I got closer Zim stood up, staring at me in awe, which immediately put me off.

"I thought you went home." I said, passing the invader. He quickly joined my side as I walked, still looking starstruck. Before I could ask him what was up, he spoke.

"What _was_ that?" He demanded excitedly. I quirked a brow.

"What was _what_?" I asked back, not knowing what he was talking about.

" _That!_ Those sounds you were making on stage. What on Irk was that?" He clarified. I rolled my eyes, not seeing what he was so worked up for.

"It's called singing Zim, it's not that big of a deal." I told him casually. My voice isn't all that great, I thought, still not understanding what was so amazing about it to Zim.

"I've never heard anything like it in my life!" He beamed with a large grin. My brow furrowed again.

"What, you don't have music on Irk?" I inquired. Thinking about it, that was likely the case. Zim looked at me in confusion.

"Myoo-zik?" He tried to repeat the word. I smiled a bit.

_"Music,_ " I repeated. "Wow, looks like I'm going to have to teach you a little more about Earth culture." I mumbled, pushing open the doors leading outside. I blinked, surprised to see that it was raining.

"Huh, there wasn't anything about rain in the forecast." I said to myself, staring out at the heavy rainfall. I glanced over at Zim to see he was shivering just looking at the puddles forming on the sidewalk.

"What's wrong, skip your paste bath this morning?" I mocked, smirking at the quaking alien.

"Yes, actually, I did." He snapped, aiming a sharp glare at me. I just scoffed and shook my head. Reaching into my backpack, I pulled out my umbrella. I opened it and took a step out from under the awning, looking back at the Irken.

"Well, lucky for you, I always keep an umbrella in my bag." I said casually, motioning for him to join me. He didn't react for a long while, just staring at me in shock. But after a moment, he seemed to regain his composure and hesitantly joined me under the black umbrella. It was a tight fit though, since it wasn't built to shelter two. I gave up on trying to stay dry after a minute of bumping into Zim every time we tried to walk. "Here." I sighed, handing him the umbrella to hold. He looked down at me in surprise as I made more room for Zim to stay under the umbrella. I soon felt the cold drops of water seep through my blazer and shivered involuntarily.

"Aren't you getting wet, Gaz-partner?" Zim asked, looking at my sopping wet shoulder. I shrugged.

"Yeah, but I'm a lot less fragile than you, so I can handle it." I teased, grinning up at him. He frowned and glared at me.

"Zim is _not_ fragile, you earth-worm! Your putrid rain water is so polluted that it burns him." The invader growled defensively, gripping the handle he held tighter.

"Whatever, whiner. Just remember to take your stupid paste bath, I might not be so merciful next time." I joked. The humor was lost on him as he suddenly recoiled and hissed in pain after stepping in a large puddle. He grimaced, rolling up the pant leg to examin himself. The green skin was hissing and sizzling like acid had been splashed on it, not water.

"Shit, come on. We're almost there." I groused, hurrying the alien along to his base. We had luckily avoided any further puddles on our way and we were soon safe inside his base. I whipped my jacket off and rang out the left side that had gotten wet. When I turned back around, Zim was on his way down to what I assumed was his lab. I wasn't sure though, since I'd only been here once when I was eleven. I decided to follow after him to see if he need any help treating his leg. I stepped out of the elevator, not really taken aback by my new surroundings. After all, I'd seen stranger. I spotted Zim sitting on a metal examination table, his school uniform already replaced by his usual invader garb. He had yet to tend to his leg though as I watched him struggling to fix the wound on his own.

"Do you need help with that, or are you good?" I asked, raising a brow at him. Zim clicked his tongue, a strip of special gauze between his teeth.

"Wha makths you fink I neeth your halp, hooman?" He hissed, the gauze still hanging from his mouth. I sneered and rolled my eyes, turning on my heel.

"I guess someone's on their man-period." I quipped, getting back in the elevator.

"Whaths that s'possed ta mean?!" I could hear him yell back as I got out on the first floor. I chuckled and took a seat on the couch, waiting for him to come back up. I didn't really know what to do with myself while I waited, so I pulled out my GS3 and started playing. After a short while, I noticed something blue in my peripheral vision and looked up to see Gir out of his costume, peering at me from behind a corner. I raised a brow at the robot before going back to my game. I heard his metal feet clank against the floor as he came closer. When I paused my game again, the small robot was standing in front of me, his head cocked to the side in curiosity.

"Wass that?" He asked, staring at my handheld. I didn't say anything at first, not wanting to engage with the little cretin, but the silence stretched and I felt awkward just letting it grow.

"Uh, it's a video game." I said, warily handing the device to him and prayed he wouldn't break it.

"Ooooooooooh! I has one of deez! 'Sept it's bigger!" The SIR unit cooed, unpausing the game and started mashing the buttons. My eyes widened in horror.

"Hey, I didn't say you could play it! Give that back! You'll ruin my game!" I shouted, reaching for the game. But the robot quickly ran off, giggling madly as he went. I growled and ran after him. "Come back here before I turn you into scrap metal!" I yelled after him, following him down a hallway. I grinned, realizing he'd reached a dead-end. I had him cornered now and stalked towards him, ready to pounce. "Give it here, you little thief." I purred in a sinister tone. Gir blinked at me and quickly turned on his heel, headed straight for the wall. Except he didn't smash into it like I expected him to, instead, he kept running, up the wall, and finally above me on the ceiling. He started giggling uncontrollably again and I sighed in resignation. "Fuck it. He'll get bored eventually." I muttered to myself as I went back to sit on the couch. After a few more minutes of sitting and listening to Gir play my GS3 and laughing, he fell from the ceiling, landing next to me on the couch. I looked at him expectantly and he handed me the device with a smile. I saw that he had almost reached my high score and looked back up at him. "You're actually pretty good at this. You said you've got games of your own?" I asked, intrigued. Maybe I'd found a new gaming buddy.

**Zim's POV**

When I came back up from the lab, the Dib-sister and Gir were sitting beside each other and playing one of the many video games I was begged to buy for the SIR unit. I huffed in amusement at the sight and rested a hand on my hip.

"I see you two are getting along." I stated, resting against the arm of the couch. Grunts and various other fighting noises were the only reply before Gaz spoke up.

"I wouldn't say that, but considering I was ready to turn him into a molten pile of metal only 20 minutes ago, this is an improvement." She said, eyes still glued to the screen. I frowned a bit and glared at the television, irritated that it had the human girl's full attention. I still wanted to know more about this "singing" and "music" she had mentioned back at the school, but I wouldn't know anything more if this continued. I walked into her line of sight, right in front of the TV screen, with my arms crossed over my chest impatiently. Her brows furrowed and she leaned to the left, trying to see around me.

"Zim, you're right in front of the screen. I can't beat your stupid robot like this!" She hissed, mashing the buttons on the controller furiously. I remained put, looking at Gaz with contempt.

"You said you would teach me more about Earth culture. So, teach Zim about your dirty culture." I commanded, narrowing my eyes at the girl. She bared her teeth in frustration, but remained moderately unfazed by my presence.

"Can't it wait just a few more minutes?" She grunted, clearly becoming more irritated. I didn't reply, a sly smirk creeping onto my face. I faced the television and reached behind the screen, feeling around for the power button. Once I found it, I didn't hesitate to turn it off, the screen turning black. A startled gasp brought my attention back to Gaz, who stared at the blank screen in disbelief. Her eyes then fixed on me and she let out a growl of annoyance before slumping back onto the couch. The human glared at me with a pout and I grinned at her victoriously.

"Fucking buzz kill." She grumbled, chucking the controller at me. I expected as much and caught the plastic device before it could hit me in the face. Gaz huffed, disappointed that she hadn't hit her intended target. I rolled my eyes, letting the controller fall to the floor and coming over to sit on the couch. I picked Gir up and set him on the floor, taking his spot next to the human girl. There was a long silence between us as I just looked at her, expecting her to speak. After about a minute of this, Gaz threw her head back and sighed dramatically. "Fine, what do you want know?" She asked, her tone almost a foul as her attitude.

"How did you do it?" I inquired, straightening myself a bit. The human paused, thinking, before shrugging.

"Well, I don't know, it just kind of comes naturally. You just...elongate vowels like you're talking, and change pitch...and you just sing. It's just a human thing, I guess." She replied, unsure of her words. My brow creased in confusion.

"So all of you possess those notes inside you?" I assumed, raising a brow at her. Gaz frowned in thought and shook her head.

"Well, kind of. Not everyone is good at singing though. That's why it's considered a talent." She explained, pulling her legs up onto the couch. I nodded in understanding before another question popped into my head.

"Why do you humans sing? Is it for communication purposes?" Gaz laughed and shook her head, smiling at me. It was an increasingly common occurrence as I was forced to spend more time with her. It wasn't bad though, I liked it better than the glares and snarls I would normally receive from her.

"Not on a physical level, no. But spiritually and emotionally, I suppose it is. People sing as a form of entertainment or expression." She answered. I narrowed my eyes a bit.

"Then it has no tactical purpose?" I baited, testing to see what she would reveal to me. She sighed in annoyance and I frowned, not wanting to lose sight of that smile just yet.

"No, Zim. Humans as a species aren't constantly thinking about war and how to have the advantage against potential enemies. We don't really have a sole purpose other than to live our lives. And singing is a part of living-whether it be listening to others sing or actually singing for yourself, it's a unique part of the human culture." She said, turning to dig something out of her bag. She pulled out what I had always labeled as a communicator, but Gaz was quick to correct me, explaining that it was actually called a cell phone.

"What's it supposed to do?" I questioned, leaning in to get a better look at the screen of the device. Her fingers swiped across the screen and it changed several times as she opened different programs, stopping only when she opened one that had a pair of headphones on it. She went back to swiping before sounds started coming from the cell phone. My brow furrowed in befuddlement as I listened to the strange noise. It was like the sing Gaz had done earlier, but it wasn't a voice creating the sound, it was something entirely different. Noticing my confusion, the human spoke up.

"This is the song I sang today, accept this has music to it. And it's someone else singing." She told me, placing the phone in my hands. I just stared at it in amazement when a voice joined in with the music.

"Do you have more of this music?" I asked, hopeful that she would say yes. She smiled and nodded, taking the phone back and scrolling through it. Another song began to play, this one set at a faster pace. I enjoyed it though, I like the way the music and singing meshed together to form something completely new. Gaz continued to show me different types of music until it was time for her to leave. She reached into her bag one more time, handing me a pair of headphones and another foreign piece of technology. But it seemed to have a similar interface to the one her cell phone had, so it couldn't be too hard to navigate.

"What's this?"

"It's an IPod. It has music on it that you can listen to. I figured it would be easier to let you barrow this to listen to, rather than waiting until we hang out again. This way you can listen to it on your own." She replied, pulling her damp blazer on and slinging her bag over her shoulder. I stared at her for a while before realizing she was waiting for a response of some kind.

"Thanks..." I mumbled, openly dumbfounded by the uncharacteristically kind gesture. She nodded back and made her way to the door.

"No problem. I'll see you around." She replied, walking out the door. I stared after her for what felt like minutes, before deciding to stare at the things left in my hands. I could tell, this would be a long, sleepless night of research and data collection.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> AN: Here you go guys, long chapter this time! Sorry for making you wait for the last chapter, life got busy. I'll try to post at least once a week, but the dates might get spread out while I'm still in school. If it were just school taking up my time, it probably wouldn't be so bad. But I'm doing twice the work of a normal senior just to graduate on time, and on top of it, I'm working a job. So that leaves little free time or even time to write, but I'll stop with the excuses. Hopefully once summer arrives I'll have more time on my hands. Hope you enjoy, I had lots of fun writing this one!


	10. Plan

**Chapter 9**

* * *

_Our paper faces flood the streets,_  
_And if the heat comes close enough to burn then we'll play with fire 'cause..._

_You'll never take us alive_  
_We swore that death will do us part_  
_They'll call our crimes a work of art_  
_You'll never take us alive_  
_~Partners In Crime - Set It Off~_

* * *

~The Following Week~

I woke up that day the same way I did everyday, with a grumble and a frown etched into my face. I quickly silenced my alarm, and rolled out of bed, as ready as I'd ever be to start such an early day. To anyone who doesn't think waking up at 7 in the morning after staying up until 4 doing homework is an achievement, you can kiss my ass because this shit isn't as easy as it looks. At a snail's pace, I did my usual morning routine, not really bothering to acknowledge Dib when I finally made it to the kitchen. I ate my breakfast and went back to my room to finish getting ready, before heading out the door. I was so out of it that I hadn't realized the time, I was going to be late at this rate and Dib had already taken off without me. So I was left with the option of walking to school, or not going at all. And while I didn't really care, I decided being tardy was enough. I didn't rush myself as I followed my route to the school, sipping my coffee every now and again in hopes that it would snap me out of my morning funk. I should have been paying more attention to where I was going, because while I decided the ground was more entertaining to look at, I walked right into someone. I stepped back and looked up to see who I'd hit, and realized it was Zim.

"You know, it's rude to run into people like that all the time." He scolded, smirking down at me. I just blinked at the invader and yawned, walking around him to continue on my way.

"Right, sorry. I'm not really alive at the moment." I mumbled in apology, taking another sip of my beverage. The alien looked down at me in horror.

"Then how are you still walking around? And when exactly did you die? Do all you humans come back as slow, meat sacks after you've perished?" He inquired, poking my shoulder and arm, causing me to sway slightly.

"I'm not actually dead, idiot. I might as well be, though." I groused with a small frown. Zim's brow furrowed in confusion and he shook his head.

"You Earth-worms and your strange expressions. But you do look rather different today, are you feeling alright?" He asked, raising a brow at me. I snickered, finding the invader exceptionally funny in my sleep deprived state.

"Haha, you care about me!" I teased, nudging the Irk with my shoulder. Zim scoffed, rolling his eyes at me.

"Call it whatever you like, human. Invaders care for and need _no one_. I'm simply making sure that my asset is well so I can continue to learn about your horrid species." He countered, attempting to be aloof. I just smiled to myself and continued to drink my coffee.

"So I'm just an asset to you now? I thought we were supposed to be partners. You should know better than to jerk a girl around like that, you might hurt her feelings." I joked, attempting to mess with his head. He placed a hand on my shoulder, causing me to stop in my walk. I looked up at the alien with a questioning gaze.

"You _are_ Zim's partner, and in turn, you are also an asset to myself and the Irken Empire." He clarified, looking down at me sternly. I raised a brow at him mockingly.

"Is that so, green bean?" I teased, crossing my arms over my chest. He glared at me, looking insulted, but like he wasn't sure if what I had said was actually insulting. He glanced down at the travel mug in my hand, his expression turning to one of curiosity.

"What _is_ that?" He questioned, pointing at the silver cup. I lifted it up and shook it a little.

"It's coffee, want some?" I offered, handing the mug to him. He held it in his hands, puzzled by the silver mystery-contraption. After a minute of just waiting for him to do something, I finally snapped.

"You drink it, doofus." I hinted, placing my hands on my hips impatiently. He frowned and looked at me warily.

"Zim has learned not to try new things when it comes to Earth foods and drinks." He told me, looking back at the mug in question.

"It's got lots of sugar in it." I coaxed with a smirk. With only a sigh of reluctance, he brought the rim to his lips and took a sip. It was a short lived experience though, as he spat the mouthful out only two seconds later. I raised my eyebrows in surprise and took the mug back. I actually thought he would like it, but I guess not.

"Why on Irk is it so hot?!" He yelled, glaring at me. I smiled, laughing at him and started walking again now that my experiment was finished.

"It tastes better that way. You don't want room temp coffee, trust me." I replied, finishing the rest of my drink. When we finally got to the school, we went our separate ways and didn't run into each other again until lunch.

At Lunch...

As I walked up to Zim's table, I noticed he was listening to music with the headphones I had given him last Wednesday. He was bobbing his head to whatever song he was listening to and I smirked, creeping up behind him. Carefully I pulled them off his head, trying not to take his wig with them. The action startled him and he whirled around, hissing at me with bared teeth. I just chuckled and placed the headphones over my ears to hear what he'd been listening to. After a moment I recognized the song as "Famous Last Words" by MCR. Curious, I looked at the playlist he had put together and laughed out loud, pulling the headphones off.

"I guess everyone has to go through this phase sooner of later." I said to myself, grinning at the invader in amusement. He cocked a brow questioningly as I sat down across from him.

"What are you talking about?" He asked, staring at me with a perplexed expression. I gave the headphones and IPod back to him and replied.

"The playlist you put together. It's pretty similar to one's that most troubled middle-schoolers have." I explained, still giggling at the bands on the playlist. It wasn't that they were bad bands or anything, but it was just so...angsty? Is that the right word for this fuck-storm of 'emo' music? Yeah, probably.

"I'm going to assume that's a bad thing." He sighed, crossing his arms in a sulky manner.

"Not exactly, I was simply hoping you wouldn't have to suffer through this part of music discovery like the rest of us did." I replied in good humor. The alien shrugged and started scrolling through the IPod.

"Well, that observation aside, I have a song I want to show you." He mumbled, focused on finding the song. I raised a brow in curiosity and waited patiently. Zim finally looked up and passed the headphones to me, gesturing for me to put them on. I did as I was instructed, waiting for the music to start playing. The cowbell intro was promising and I snickered at it, earning a glare from the Irk. I tried to smooth out my face but when I recognized the lyrics I just started laughing again. _'They say I'll only do you wrong. We come together cause I understand just who you really are, baby.'_ When the song ended I sighed, trying not to laugh again. I took a moment to gather myself before speaking.

"Okay, definitely not a song I would have guessed. So, why did you show me this song?" I finally asked, placing the headphones on the table. Zim smiled a bit.

"It makes me think of you." He told me, like it was the most obvious thing ever. My brow creased in befuddlement and I blinked at him.

"What, so you see me as your little sister?" I teased, knowing 'little sister' was just a slang term. Zim rolled his contacted eyes and sneered.

"Ugh, no, that's disgusting! That's not even the point of the song." He groused, narrowing his eyes at me in irritation.

"Oh? So suddenly you're an expert on music?"

"It's conveying the fact that you can trust me with the truth of who you really are more than the rest of your puny race. And to a lesser extent, I can trust you in return." He explained, muttering the last part almost too quietly for me to catch. My brows rose in surprise as I pondered the idea of trusting someone like Zim. It wouldn't be a good idea, I concluded.

"You really think I should trust you?" I inquired, looking at him skeptically. He grinned cockily and tilted his head to the side.

"Of course, it's not like Zim has anyone that would care to hear your secrets." He said, waving his hand dismissively. I frowned at this and crossed my arms.

"Well, while I may place my trust in you eventually, I won't be telling you any secrets." I confessed, eyeing him with a untrusting expression. He frowned in return, pouting slightly.

"Why not?" He demanded. I shrugged.

"Would you tell me _your_ secrets?" I countered, knowing he wouldn't say yes. The invader didn't respond, opting to look away with a huff. I smirked back. "I didn't think so. So why should I tell you my secrets when I have nothing over you to use as leverage?" I posed, not expecting an actual answer. Zim sighed and met my gaze once again.

"I see your point, but you will have to trust me at some point." He reminded me. I knew that if this partnership was going to work out, he was right. We had to have some kind of trust, but I didn't think I was quite ready to start something like that yet.

"We'll see about that." I mused, gesturing for him to hand me the IPod. I wanted to pay him back for that rather awkward song, by showing him one that reminded me of _him_. But before I could really look through the songs, a voice called for me. I looked over my shoulder to see Dib coming up to us.

"Gaz, there you are! What are you doing over here with **him**?" He asked, looking completely dumbfounded by this. I gave Zim a quick glance, asking for help, but he just nodded at Dib, leaving it to me to explain. "Is **this** where you've been spending lunch the last couple of days?" I let out a long breath before switching to a cold expression that often unnerved my big headed brother.

"Yes, Dib. And we were having a conversation about music before you came over and started spazzing out." I growled, frowning at him.

"I am _not_ spazzing out! Okay...well, maybe I am, just a little. But that's not the point! Why are you guys hanging out anyway?" He demanded, his hands balled into fists at his sides in aggravation. I raised a brow condescendingly, unmoved by his display of anger.

"He's my science partner, stupid. Why else would we tolerate each other?" I hissed, narrowing my eyes at Dib. He immediately lost all of his anger, which was quickly replaced with apprehension.

"But Zim doesn't even care about school-!" I stood up from my seat, cutting my brother off. I stepped up to him, managing to intimidate him despite being so much smaller than him.

"Well I do, Dib. And I'll be damned if I do all the work or fail this project just because you don't want me around him." I interjected, feeling myself slowly start lose my cool. He realized this as well and gulped, backing up a bit.

"F-Fine, but as soon as this project is finished, I don't want to see you guys around each other!" He tried to say in an authoritative tone, but the stuttering made it hard to take what he said seriously. I clicked my tongue and went to sit back down.

"Whatever." I muttered, resting my chin on my hand.

"And you," Dib began, pointing at the alien across from me. Zim glared back, obviously itching for an excuse to hit my brother. I actually liked that look on him, it was threatening for once. "My sister has nothing to do with our feud. So if you do anything to mess with her while you two are stuck together, you'll have me to deal with." He cautioned, his eyes narrowing into slits. The invader chuckled, grinning arrogantly at his nemesis.

"Oh, you don't have to worry yourself Dib-stink. Your sister is in good hands, Zim won't hurt a hair on her pretty little head." He instigated, attempting to further provoke Dib. This earned him a glare from the both of us but it didn't seem to faze the invader. With an agitated growl, Dib stomped off to his table were his friends were waiting for him. Once he was gone, I turned back to Zim.

"This isn't good. If Dib catches wind of what's going on, we'll never get away with this." I groaned, more to myself than to him. The invader shook his head at me with a smirk.

"I'm flattered that you care so much about the success of our mission, but Zim thinks you give the Dib too much credit. He won't catch on. As long as we are discreet about the true nature of our partnership, everything should be fine. It's not like he would be able to stop us anyway. Once the armada is on its way, there's no going back." He assured me, trying to ease my worry. I hoped he was right about this, or we would be screwed.

Later, in anatomy...

That day in class, we were given time to work on our projects during the period. Zim had been mostly silent during the class, except for when I asked him to help me plan out our trifold. Once that was settled, he spoke up. "I've been meaning to bring this up, but we haven't really done anything to plan for the invasion since our little partnership began." He said in a hushed voice, trying to be quiet despite the clamor of people talking and working. I considered this and finally nodded in agreement.

"You have a point, and you've done really well on the last couple of quizzes. Is that what you'd like to do today?" I asked, putting most of my things away in my backpack.

"Yes, it's important for us to start as soon as possible. Irk knows I'm already five years behind schedule." The alien affirmed, grumbling the last part with a shake of his head. I chuckled to myself and finally left the class when the bell dismissed us.

At the base...

When we walked in the front door, we were immediately greeted by the smell of burn plastic and other things. Acting quickly, Zim ran into the kitchen, ready to put out whatever was the cause of the billowing smoke. I watched in amusement as he scrambled to extinguish the flaming waffle iron. The little robot terror that had made the mess came flying around the corner, and wrapped his arms around my legs in a vice like hold. I grimaced down at him and tried to shake him off, but it seemed to be a useless endeavor.

"Gir! How many times have I told you not to cook while I'm not in the base to supervise you?" I heard the invader yell before exiting the kitchen himself. His face was angrily scrunched up and covered in soot, earning hysterical laughter from his dimwitted sidekick. The Irk and I both looked down at the pint-sized trouble maker with contempt, and with a final, firm kick of my leg, the robot was sent into the ceiling with a loud clank. When he fell back onto the floor with no sign of being bothered by the abuse, Zim heaved a sigh.

"Computer, clean up this mess." The alien commanded, receiving a loud groan of annoyance from the A.I.

"Ugh, do I have to?" It droned in a whiny tone. Zim rolled his eyes and shook his head.

"Alright, now that the shenanigans are out of the way, let's get to work on the plan." Zim addressed me, quite literally marching towards the toilet/elevator. I narrowed my eyes at it in confusion and looked up to the invader.

"You do know that toilets don't belong in kitchens, right?" I asked seriously as I stepped into the tight elevator. Obviously he hadn't counted on having more than just himself in it at one time when he was building this place. He clicked his tongue in annoyance and crossed his arms, glowering down at me.

"Does it really matter? The only humans that have been lucky enough to get inside my glorious base are the Dib-stink, that one creepy kid, Keef, and yourself. Zim does not have time to fret over such small details." He answered, stepping out into the lab. I shrugged, and stepped out after the alien. I followed him down the narrow walkway that led to what looked like a giant control desk, with screens covering the dome-like structure and a vast keyboard. It was like we were inside a giant, metal globe. In front of the console was a single chair were Zim plopped into, turning it around to face me. The way he did it made him look like a cheesy movie villain and I frowned in an effort to battle a smile.

"So, do you actually know where you'd like to begin this time, or am I going to have to take the lead again?" I quipped, setting my backpack down beside me. There weren't any other chairs so I just stood there with my arms crossed. The invader rolled his eyes at me and crossed his arms as well.

"Yes. Let's start with weaknesses, both human and Irken. You made a good point when you brought up the issue of not being able to attack the planet directly due to all the water." He replied. I nodded in agreement.

"Right. Well, Earth as a whole doesn't have much to defend itself with. I mean, we have nuclear weapons, but I assume with the tech I've seen from your planet that it would cause harm only to ourselves. Then there's the fact that we probably wouldn't be able to unite as a planet to fight the armada off. People are just so stubborn and stupid, they won't put their differences aside, even if it's to save the world. Maybe a country will band together to defend their own, but they really don't stand a chance. Lastly, with the way human emotions are, that could be a tactic to use. Fear can be crippling, hopelessness can cause people to give up, and there's always the possibility of using a person's loved ones against them. Sometimes, if you can't threaten someone with hurting them, you can threaten their family or friends in order to get them to cooperate. There's plenty more weaknesses that could be taken advantage of, but off the top of my head, that's all I can think of." I told the alien. He nodded thoughtfully as he spoke.

"I think that will be good enough for now. If necessary, we can come back to it later. As for _our_ weaknesses, they may be few but they are weaknesses nevertheless. First would be the water all around your planet. I've tested several water sources around the Earth and there are only a few bodies of water that are pure enough not to do any harm. That includes some bottled water, since it's treated with chemicals. The next issue would be the size of our invaders and the rest of the armada. You saw how small I was when I first arrived on Earth, most Irks are only a bit taller than that. And while we may be stronger than we look, it would be like sending child-sized soldiers in. We do have more advanced weaponry though, which could likely make up for the lacking stature and strength. Then there's the matter of being outnumbered. There are over 6 billion humans on this planet. We're currently in the height of Operation Impending Doom 2, so our armada is being stretched fairly thin. There's no way we would have the numbers against this many humans." He explained, looking like he was already trying to come up with a plan despite the major drawbacks that faced us.

"I mentioned before that a direct attack would be suicide, so as long as we do this carfully, we can pull this off. There's several strategies we could use. But I think the best way to go about this would be to put something in the water systems. There isn't a human on Earth that doesn't drink water, accept for people in underdeveloped countries. What I propose is that we weaken everyone with some sort of virus, something that won't kill them, just make them sluggish and unable to fight back." I suggested, taking a few steps closer to the seated Irk. He nodded, his brow furrowing in thought.

"Yes, once that's done, it would be much easier to round them up." He muttered to himself, stating the obvious, causing me to roll my eyes.

"There's just one thing." I interjected, smirking at him a bit. Zim glanced up at me with a clearly confused look on his face, and I reiterated.

"I hope you're not still as mysophobic as you were in middle school. Because that may be a problem if this is the route we take." I teased. The invader chuckled and waved his hand in the air.

"No, no. I got over that quite quickly once I discovered that human germs have no effect on Irken cells. But my knowledge on human pathology is practically nonexistent." He said with a small smile.

"Well, shit. I was looking forward to antagonizing you with that little phobia. For now, we'll have to leave it here, I've got class." I dismissed myself, picking up my backpack and heading for the elevator.

"Class? Isn't school over for the day?" He inquired, following after me. I smiled and shook my head.

"Not that kind of class, Zim. I take ballet twice a week." I clarified, looking up at him as he joined me in the elevator, much to my chargin. He didn't seem to know what I was talking about and I sighed tiredly. "It's a form of dance. But let's keep this between us, I don't need anyone else outside of my family knowing I'm involved in something so girly. Takes away from my threatening aura, y'know?" The Irk still didn't look like he understood what I was talking about. I let the subject drop as I exited the cramped elevator and turned to face my partner. "I'll see you at school tomorrow." I said, now heading for the door. I got no reply from Zim, but I didn't really care as I stepped out into the cul-de-sac.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Author's Note: GUUUUUUUUYYYYYYSSSSS! I'm so sorry it took so long to post this chapter. I kept getting sidetracked with other parts of the story I want to write. But hopefully the length and content makes up for the wait (it's almost 4000 words without the author's note). Any who, I just finished finals, which means spring break is on its way. And that means time to do the writing thing. Hopefully I'll be able to get enough done to be able to post two chapters on the day of the week I said I would start posting. Enjoy y'all.


	11. Mouthful of Lies

_But this isn't truth_  
_This isn't right_  
_This isn't love_  
_This isn't life_  
_This isn't real_  
_This is a lie_  
_~This Is A Lie - The Cure~_

* * *

**Later, the same night...**

I heard a knock at my door over my music and took my ear buds out.

"What?" I called, waiting for Dib to say whatever he had to say so I could get back to planning. The doorknob turned and my brother poked his head inside my room.

"I just came to say goodnight." He said with a gentle smile. I tried not to roll my eyes at this gesture and huffed, glaring slightly at him.

"Goodnight, Dib. Don't let the extraterrestrials bite." I mumbled, going back to my notebook. I heard the teen snicker.

"Goodnight, Gaz." He said again before closing the door. I sighed and popped my ear buds back in as I tapped the pencil against my notebook. I was writing down more ideas for the invasion-The water idea could work, but there wasn't any room for miscalculation, and the longer I thought about it, the more I found faults in it. So I had to think of a few backup plans. After a while though, I was finding it difficult to focus. Zim and I may have outlined what our plan would be for the invasion, but now I had to make a plan of my own. If I didn't, the people I love and myself would die and I couldn't let that happen. I had to get us off of this planet, but how? Where would we go? _It's not like we have any allies is space_ -I stopped in my train of thought as an idea popped into my head. My eyes widened as I nodded to myself. That just might work, I thought, moving to get up. I paused, realizing I couldn't act now, Dib had only just gone bed. I would have to wait until I was sure he was asleep. With a disappointed sigh, I sat back down on my bed and poured over my notebook again. I waited a few hours to be absolutely sure, having spent the time doodling on the pages that were meant to hold more possible plans for the invasion. I crept outside of my bedroom and crossed the hall, pressing my ear to Dib's door. I could hear faint snoring as he slept, and it was times like this that I was thankful for my brother's deviated septum. I smiled faintly and made my way silently down the stairs and through the dark kitchen. I stood before the garage door, the only source of light emitted from the illuminated keypad next to the door.

"DNA sample required." The automated voice said, much louder than I had thought it would and I cringed. I checked over my shoulder and listened carefully to make sure Dib hadn't stirred. I turned my attention back to the security lock. I licked my thumb and pressed it firmly against the scan pad. After a moment, the lock beeped and a small light next to the handle blinked green.

"DNA verified; Welcome, Gazalene Membrane." The voice greeted, again, too loud for my liking. I growled in aggravation and slipped inside the pitch black garage. I fumbled around for a flashlight, knowing there was one on the workbench just beside the door. Feeling the cool metal of the flashlight, I grabbed it and turned it on, carefully maneuvering over wires and other things strode all across the freezing concrete floor. I cautiously approached the wrecked Irken craft; Tak's ship. The cracked glass hood opened with a hiss and I climbed inside, taking a seat in the only chair inside the small ship. I sat there for a moment and took a deep breath, going over the plan in my head. _'Get the comm up and running, and make contact with the Resisty...'_ I told myself. If only it were that easy...I couldn't just ask them to come pick us up before the armada got here. I mean, it's been over a year since Dib last made contact with Lard Nar, and that was to assure him that Zim was no longer an active threat to the Earth. How was I going to explain the danger we were in without outing myself in the process? I sighed to myself and turned on the ship. I guess I'd just have to wing it. I typed into the keyboard the security code required to open a comm-link with the Resisty's ship. A kind of loading screen appeared, informing me that the connection was being made. I had no idea how long this would take and decided to get comfortable in the crescent shaped seat, trying to fight off sleep. Eventually though, I succumbed to my exhaustion and passed out.

I woke with a surprised jolt, light from the screen washing over me. I shielded my eyes against it and sat up.

"It's been a while, hasn't it, Dib?" An unfamiliar voice greeted. I uncovered my eyes now, glaring slightly at the figure on the screen.

"Actually, this is Gaz, Dib's sister." I corrected him, crossing my arms as I sat back in the chair again. The Vortian squinted at me and leaned in to get a better look before his brows rose in recognition.

"Ah, my apologies, I couldn't tell at first. But as I stated before, it's been quite some time since we last spoke to you humans. How's everything going down there?" He asked with a smile. I frowned instantly and took a deep breath.

"Complicated. The last time Dib talked to you, he told you that the invader assigned to our planet was no longer active in his mission. I'm here to inform you that this is no longer true. He has a plan, one he will be taking to his Tallest and I have no doubt that once they're shown it, they will send the conversion team and armada our way." I said grimly, feeling my chest grow heavy with the weight of my involvement in this plan. His yellow eyes widened in shock and the color drained from his face, leaving it a pale, ashen color.

"When did this happen? _How_  could this happen? He's not supposed to be a threat anymore...why are _you_  telling me this instead of Dib?" He inquired in a quiet, horrified voice.

"Because Dib doesn't know about it." I confessed. The Vortian looked bewildered by this news.

"Why not?" He demanded, a tinge of anger in his tone. I was quiet for a moment, trying to gather my thoughts before replying.

"I'm being held hostage for information by the invader. He told me that if I helped him and kept quiet, that my family would be spared from suffering at the Empire's hands. I don't believe for a damn second that he'll keep his word. And that's why I came to you. I'm begging that you take Dib and my father with you." I pleaded, bowing my head. There was a lapse of silence, and I grew anxious as I waited for an answer.

"How much time do you have before the armada gets there?" He asked. I looked up at him and I couldn't tell what he was thinking, or whether he would help my family or not.

"I'm not sure. His plans are still in the early stages of development, but I have no doubt that they will be here within a year. I can give you a better estimate once the armada is on its way." I replied, hoping the Resisty's ship was flying close enough to Earth to get Dib and my dad before anything happened to the planet. There was another pause and I felt nearly sick from the knots twisting in my stomach.

"Give me the invader's name, and I'll see what I can dig up on him. Maybe there will be something you can use against him." Lard Nar proposed, rubbing his chin. I was a bit surprised by this-was that really something he could just look up?

"Zim." I uttered quietly. The alien's brow furrowed and he hummed to himself.

"I'm not sure why, but the name rings a bell. Well, I can tell you later, once I've done some research. In the meantime, what are you going to do about yourself? Don't you want to come with Dib and your father?" He asked, looking a little confused. I sighed and slumped against the backrest of the chair.

"It's too late for me at this point, if Zim catches me he'll kill me. And if I stay, well, he'll kill me eventually. I won't make it out alive either way, I just want my brother and father safe. Please." A sigh escaped the Vortian, a look of pity and sorrow on his face as he stared at me.

"Well, there's still plenty of room here, so I'm sure they'd make great additions to the Resisty." He answered, trying a weak smile out on his thin lips and I sighed in relief.

"Thank you, so much." I murmured, looking earnestly at the alien and he gave a nod.

"Not a problem. We aboard the Resisty wish you luck, Gaz. Maybe we'll see you again, hopefully out of the reach of the Empire." He said, growling the last part scornfully.

"Maybe. For now, I have to go. I'll contact you again once I know exactly how much time we have." I told him, ending the transmission. After a moment of sitting there in the dark, I could feel myself beginning to fall asleep again, and decided it would be better to sleep in my bed. I turned the flashlight back on and navigated my way to the door, where a sliver of light peeked out from under it. Was it morning already? Had I been waiting _that_  long for the connection to go through? I sighed in exhaustion and set the flashlight back where it belonged, opening the garage door cautiously. I padded into the kitchen and looked out of the window above the sink.

The sun was up, but it was hidden behind a sheet of clouds, foretelling rain in the near future. I ascended the stairs carefully, avoiding the steps I knew would creak and I slipped back into my dark room, thankful for the blackout curtains I had hung up. I glared at my alarm clock and cursed, seeing that it was 6:27 AM. I fell onto my bed face-first, praying that the 30 minutes I had left before my alarm went off would be enough sleep for me to function.

They weren't...

By the time I woke up, the roads and sidewalks were slick with rain. Normally, I would have loved walking to school in the rain, but once I realized I would likely be sharing an umbrella with Zim again, I frowned in disdain. I moved quickly through my morning routine to ensure that I had enough time to stop by Zim's base before heading to school. Grabbing my umbrella, I rushed out the door before Dib could ask where I was going. I reached the lopsided green house just in time to see the invader leaving his base with a scowl. I smirked and let out a whistle to get his attention, twirling the umbrella in my hands.

"Did someone actually remember to take their paste bath this time?" I teased, meeting the Irk halfway up the walkway. He mirrored my expression but rolled his eyes, crossing his arms.

"Zim won't be forgetting again anytime soon. Not after what happened last time." He grumbled as I turned to walk back the way I came.

"Oh good, then I assume you didn't need me to come by to keep you dry." I said, not looking back at him. I could feel the irritation radiating off of him as he begrudgingly ducked under the umbrella, walking in time with me.

"Just because Zim took his paste bath doesn't mean he likes the sensation of rain falling on him." He grumbled. I smirked and handed the handle to him since he was taller than me. We walked in peaceful silence for a while before Zim spoke up out of the blue.

"You're looking dead again today." He muttered casually, as if he hadn't really noticed. I scoffed with a forced smile.

"Thanks for noticing." I replied in a sarcastic tone, though I knew he wouldn't catch it. There was another lapse of silence growing and the alien tried to make conversation again.

"Have you not been sleeping efficiently?" He asked, raising a brow at me curiously. I shrugged in response, I really wasn't in the mood to talk that morning.

"I guess you could say that. What's it to you?" I growled, being unnecessarily hostile towards him. The invader narrowed his eyes, glaring at me out of the corner of them.

"My partner has to be at their very best everyday, and I've observed how haggard you humans can get if your sleep cycle is shortened or skipped. So Zim suggests you get more rest when the opportunity presents itself." I looked at the alien like he was nuts, which he probably was and shook my head.

"You'll learn quickly that I don't take orders from other people." I hissed as we reached a stoplight that was currently flashing a red hand to keep us from crossing the street. Without warning, the Irk grabbed my face firmly in one hand, glowering down at me. My brow furrowed in anger and confusion, but curiosity kept me from beating him up straight away.

"Zim is not 'other people'. I'm an Irken invader, and more importantly, your superior and you'll learn quickly to do as you're told, Little-Gaz." He sneered, baring his sharp teeth at me. For the briefest moment, I didn't know how to react. But once I regained my composure, I shoved the invader away from me with a frown.

"Superior?! Tch, you fucking wish." I snarled, balling my hands into fists. I proceeded to walk across the street despite the rain and the cars passing through the intersection. Anything to get away from that idiot and the dreadful pounding of my heart. The cars all came to screeching halts just before hitting me, but I didn't flinch. _He's getting bolder,_ I thought. However, I couldn't decide if that was a bad thing or not. I stopped on the other side of the crosswalk and looked back at Zim, who stood stalk still, staring at me with wide, disbelieving eyes. I growled, turning away from him and continuing on my route, gritting my teeth the whole way. _Stupid, narcissistic jerk,_ I cursed, feeling heat rise in my cheeks.

Lunch and my free period were uneventful, since Zim had _i_ _nsisted_ that I sleep in the nurse's office during them. And by insist, I mean he forcibly dragged me to the nurse's office and instructed the staff to not let me leave until I got some rest. Which I did, but not without reluctance, since I felt like he was winning if I actually did what he told me to. There was no way in hell I would let him win...and know about it. Before I left the nurse's office, I made sure to remind the staff that I did not sleep. I was awake the whole time as far as anybody was concerned. When Zim asked me if I had rested like he had ordered me to, I told him no. This of course sent the alien into rant about how I was 'the most infuriating, defiant, and stubborn worm-baby he'd ever had the displeasure of knowing' and how I 'should listen to Zim because he doesn't have time to be coddling a human who can barely function.'

**Zim's POV**

"Normally, I _can_ function, but I was up half the night waiting for a connection to go through." The human spat as we walked through the front door of the base. I looked at the girl in confusion and raised a brow at her.

"That's hardly any reason to neglect sleep when your weak mind and body need so much of it." I grumbled, not bothering to look back at her. She gritted her teeth, narrowing her eyes at me.

"I was _trying_  to contact the Resisty's ship, so I didn't have the luxury of sleep." Gaz shot back angrily, her hands curling into fists. I froze on the spot, turning to the dirt-child slowly with a look of disbelief on my face. I closed the distance between us, gripping her by her arms.

"YOU DID WHAT?! Do you have any idea what you've done?" I screamed, making her flinch at the overbearing volume. I didn't let her answer the question before I was yelling again.

"You have betrayed not only me and our mission, but the entire Irken Empire by contacting those...useless rejects!" I shouted, stabbing a finger at the Earth-girl. She smacked my hand away with a snarl and crossed her arms defensively.

"I haven't betrayed anything, you moron! I didn't call them to tattle on you or our mission. I called them for Dib and my father." She replied calmly, but this only made me more outraged.

"Ah ha! I knew it, you _are_  working for the Dib-stink!" I accused, causing her to roll her amber eyes and hit her forehead with the palm of her hand.

"So much for trust." She said under her breath. "As usual, you're wrong, Zim. I'm not working for my brother. But I needed to contact the Resisty because I wanted them to save my father and Dib before the armada arrived." She explained in a level tone. My rage deflated instantly, and I was left sputtering for a moment before I finally said something intelligible.

"You think the Resisty would accept them?" I scoffed, copying her cross-armed stance. She shrugged and took a seat on the nearby couch.

"Lard Nar already said the Resisty would swing by to get them, so it's been settled." She retorted with a slight scowl. "At least this way they'll be safe." She murmured. I eyed the human for a moment before saying anything.

"And what about you, aren't you going with them?" I inquired. I didn't really understand why I had asked, because I couldn't care less about what actually happened to the dirt-child. Call it morbid curiosity, but I wanted to know what she had planned for herself. Gaz shook her head.

"No...I believe in facing the consequences of my actions. And if that means I have to stay here when the armada comes, then that's the way it has to be." She answered in a surprisingly remorseless way. I was taken aback by that response, how could she say something like that? Doesn't she care what happens to her?

"Are you not afraid of what will happen to you?" I pried, hoping to coax a more sane answer from the human. She smiled a bit and met my gaze.

"You tell me, do I have anything to fear?" She countered. I thought about it for a moment.

"I'm not sure, it all depends on what the Tallest decide to do with your planet." I replied cryptically. Truly, there was no way of knowing right now because there were so many different things that could happen to the Earth once it was under our control. None of them boded well for the Gaz-beast, however, some weren't as bad as others.

"Well, regardless, everybody's gotta die someday. I don't see the point in trying to fight it." She muttered in a casual way. I shook my head in bewilderment, she really was nothing like her species. Humans were supposed to have an innate instinct of self-preservation, so why didn't she want to fight for her life? Why was this so bothersome to me? Why did I _want_ her to fight? Why did I want her alive? "Besides, once they find out what I've done, they won't want anything to do with me. Especially Dib." She continued, becoming more grim as the seconds passed. For the time being, I pushed those thoughts aside and decided to change the subject to other things that weren't so troubling until she had to leave. Once she did, I was left to think about what she had said, even though I tried not to. What reason did I have to be so worried about the Earth-girl or her safety? I wouldn't need her anymore after the humans were under our control, so why did I feel dread thinking about her no longer being my partner?

* * *

**AN: Good question, Zim. BUT I DON'T CARE! Reference anyone? Meh, anyways...Looks like everybody's telling lies and hiding things, hm? To their family, to themselves...Y'all, shit bout to hit the fan next chapter. Anyone wanna guess what'll happen? ;* kisses**


	12. Betrayal

_'Cause I'm dying here_  
_You were lying it was you and I forever_  
_But now you make me shiver in the light_  
_And I'm dying here,_  
_And I'm crying over the you that I remember_  
_But now you make me shiver_  
_You're so..._

_~Cold-The Veronicas~_

* * *

**The next day...**

"Remember kids, if you draw the pictures yourself, you'll get one extra point for each illustration. And no tracing, I can tell, y'know!" I rolled my eyes as Zim and I walked out of the classroom to head to our next class. The invader had been making a habit of skipping his final period in order to come with me to the lunch room. He proclaimed that it was only so we could get more work done, but we didn't actually do work when we were in the lunch room. Instead, we would just prod at one another, asking questions about likes and dislikes, the cultural differences between our worlds, maybe a personal question thrown in there. But nothing really productive, though still important, in order to better know the other.

"Okay, so explain it to me again how time and days and shit work on your planet." I asked, furrowing my brow in concentration. Zim chuckled and scratched at his wig.

"Alright, but if you don't remember after I tell you, I won't be telling you again third time. Years on Irk are called Rae. There are 1,460 days in 1 Rae and it takes around 4 Earth years for the planet to orbit completely around our sun. We don't use months as a form of time on Irk so next would be a full rotation of the planet; what you humans call a day. We call them Sol, and it takes approximately 48 Earth hours for Irk to turn completely on its axis. An hour in Irken units is roughly twice as long as the ones here." He explained patiently. I nodded in understanding but another question popped up in my head.

"So how old are you?" I inquired, raising a brow at the alien. He smirked at me from across the table and rested his chin on his hand.

"There are two very different answers to that question. On Irk, I'd be somewhere around 30 years old, and that would translate to about 120 years on this planet." He admitted, grinning when he saw my eyes widen in surprise.

"Oh no, you're like an old man!" I teased, earning a scoff from Zim.

"Far from it. I have a long way to go before I should be considered old. And what about you? You're barely even 4 1/2 by Irk standards, which only further supports the fact that I'm your superior." He quipped back, crossing his arms. I sneered, shaking my head.

"Whatever you say, grandpa," I mumbled, looking over his shoulder at the lunchroom entrance. "Um, I think you've got a visitor." I said, pointing at the poorly disguised robot toddling towards us. The invader turned around to see who I was talking about just in time to have his head tackled by the green and black 'dog'. He didn't protest or even make a sound of surprise at this and sighed in resignation, turning back to me. He didn't bother trying to remove the SIR unit, simply moving him so that he was cuddling the side of his head instead of his face.

"He's going through...an affectionate phase right now." Zim attempted to dismiss the ambush.

"Right. Well, why don't we get these extra points out of the way? We can buy the poster board on the way back to the base and finish the project there." I suggested, pulling out paper, pens, and coloring tools. After about 15 minutes of concentration, I looked back up at my partner. I watched, amused as Gir struggled to cling to his master, using Zim's mouth and eyelid to keep him anchored. With a reluctant sigh, I forced a fake smile and addressed the robot.

"Gir, would you like to come sit on my lap?" I asked, my voice cracking from trying to make it sound sweet. The SIR unit nodded, making a loud, high-pitched sound of joy, causing both myself and his master to wince. I hesitantly outstretched my arms and the small bot instantly flung himself into them, squealing with elation. I placed him in my lap and wrapped an arm around him to make sure he stayed put. "If you behave, I'll carry you back to the base." I bribed with a small smile. Gir giggled that deranged little giggle of his, something I assumed was his promise to be good. I looked up to met Zim's gaze, receiving a silent thank you from the invader. I nodded in acknowledgment before going back to my drawing. When I looked up for the second time, I saw that Zim had made significant progress, and it honestly looked pretty damn good. "Wow, that's actually really good work." The invader smiled proudly in an ' _I know, I'm awesome'_ sort of way that made me regret praising him in the first place.

"Yes, when Zim was a scientist back on Vort, it was a useful skill to have." He agreed, continuing to draw. My brow furrowed a bit in disbelief.

"Really? I never thought were interested in science." I commented, focusing now on coloring in my drawing.

"It's understandable, after all, invader's blood marches through my veins. And I hated science, that's why I trained to be re-encode as an invader." The Irken explained coolly and I chuckled at his reply.

"Not enough explosions, huh?" I joked with a smirk. Zim smiled crookedly.

"No, there were plenty-Zim wasn't the best at mixing chemicals and nearly lost his hearing to a particularly nasty explosion. Zim is still partially deaf because of it." He confessed. My eyes widened a bit in shock before I relaxed and laughed a little.

"So _that's_ why you yell all the time" I commented teasingly. The Irken frowned.

"Zim does _not_ yell all the time!" He shouted, only serving to prove my point. I rolled my eyes.

"Tell you what, if you'll let me use your tech, I can _probably_ fix your hearing for you." Zim's antennae perked in curiosity under his poor disguise.

"Really? You would do that for Zim?" He asked, completely abandoning his work. I shrugged casually.

"Sure. I mean, I'm not very clear on Irken biology, especially when it comes to those little pipe cleaners," Zim flattened his antennae against he head defensively "but it would most likely be a simple, noninvasive procedure. It depends on what part of your hearing is messed up. I would have to custom make and test the hearing aid myself, but it shouldn't be too complex." I told him in a dismissive tone. A grin split across his face and he reached over the table, gripping my shoulders excitedly.

"YOU WILL RESTORE ZIM'S HEARING TO ITS FORMER GLORY?!" I winced at the volume of his voice, and before I could reply, Gir of course had to join in as well.

"YOOOOOOOOZZZZZZ GON FIX MASTERS FUZZY THINGIES!?" The robot screeched even louder than his master, and I immediately flung the fucker into the nearest wall.

"SHUT UP, BOTH OF YOU! Yes, I'll try. Just stop yelling, you're gonna give me a headache." I snarled. Once things had finally become quiet and I had calmed down, I spoke up again.

"So, if you use your antennae to hear, how are you able to use headphones?" I asked, pointing my pencil accusingly at the invader.

"Our antennae are very sensitive and can pick up things at much lower frequencies and volumes than humans can. And if that wasn't enough, all invader's are given implants in their skulls for hearing as well. This is so we can blend in better with inhabitants on an enemy planet, since most other races hear like you." He replied simply and I nodded back in understanding. When the last bell rang to dismiss the school, Zim and I gathered our things and headed on the familiar route to his base, only deviating from the set course to pick up a trifold and some glue to attach the drawings with. When we were almost two-thirds of the way to Zim's, I saw something that nearly made me lose my footing. Oliver was walking down the street, holding hands with a familiar head of magenta hair. It knocked the air out of my lungs, and for a moment, I was paralyzed with shock. But I was instantly flooded with overwhelming feelings that had never bothered me before this moment.

"Wassss wrong with scary lady?" Gir asked me. I didn't answer, trying to calm my racing heart and mind. I closed my eyes in an effort to focus when I felt a hand on my shoulder. I looked back at zim, who wore a slightly confused and almost worried look on his face.

"Is something wrong?" He inquired carefully, not sure if he would provoke me by asking. I let out a long breath and set Gir down, but I didn't feel any better.

"Nope, everything's just...peachy." I hissed, continuing down the sidewalk at a brisk pace. I set my jaw and clenched my fists repeatedly to try and control my anger. When Zim caught up to me, he spoke again.

"What does your filthy Earth fruit have to do with your mood?" He asked, confused by the expression I had used. I sighed in aggravation, not bothering to slow down for the alien.

"It's just an expression. It's supposed to mean everything is fine." I explained shortly, surprised I hadn't snapped at him yet.

"The Gaz-partner does not seem fine..." He remarked, still prodding me for a reply.

"I was being sarcastic, Zim! I'm not okay, I'm fucking pissed, alright!?" I shouted, blowing up right in his face. _'Welp,'_ I thought, _'there's the snap'._ He took a step back, caught off guard by my rage. I sighed, knowing I shouldn't have been such a dick when it wasn't even his fault in the first place. "Look, I'm sorry, I shouldn't be taking this out on you. It's just...annoying and inconvenient to feel certain things sometimes." I said vaguely. The invader's brow furrowed, not understanding what I meant. I couldn't blame him though, I didn't give him a very clear answer.

"Certain things? What is it, parasites?" He questioned, poking my stomach curiously. For reasons I couldn't pinpoint, this defused most of my anger for the moment. I smiled weakly and turned away, heading back in the direction of Zim's base.

"No, Zim, not parasites. Emotions. It's something of a mix between anger, jealousy...and sadness." I said the last part quietly. The word was familiar but felt very foreign to me when I thought about it. If I ever felt sad, I would push the feeling down and ignore it, something as stupid as sadness wasn't worth my time. And when I realized seeing Oliver with some other girl made me sad, I covered the feeling with anger. Once we were back at the base, Zim spoke up again.

"Why does the Gaz-partner feel sadness?" He asked, tilting his head to the side. I sighed heavily and plopped down onto the kushy couch, closing my eyes once more.

"Oliver is-well, he was supposed to be _my_ love-pig. But as we were walking back there, I saw him with another girl." I explained, rubbing my temples in an effort to ward off an oncoming headache. Zim's eyes widened in understanding and he grimaced.

"I see...then I suppose that means his doom is upon him, yes?" The Irk assumed, sitting on the other side of the couch with a smirk. I grinned at the thought of what I would do to that pathetic ass wipe tomorrow.

"Oh yeah, he's totally screwed." I laughed, deciding to get to work on the trifold instead of facing the emotions mucking up my mind.

* * *

**Zim's POV**

After the incedent with the Oliver-human, Gaz seemed out of it, like she wasn't able to focus. And it was all because of those stupid emotions! This could be a problem. If her emotions continue to get the better of her, then she won't be much use to me.

"Computer, collect any and all information you can about human emotions." I ordered immediately after the human girl left. There was a small pause before a screen descended from the ceiling, stopping in front of me, hundreds of links and Web pages with information popping up on after another.

"Didn't you already try to do an experiment with human emotions?" The AI piped up, in his usual uninterested and condescending tone. I narrowed my eyes slightly in irritation but continued to look through the articles and reports regarding human emotion.

"Yes, but it failed, because Tak was Irken, not human. And this isn't an experiment." I clarified, absently swiping from page to page.

"What is this for then?" Computer pressed, finally managing to sound somewhat curious.

"With the Earth-girl in the predicament she is currently facing, I think it would be a wise idea to read up on human behavior and emotions. I may be able to control her better that way." I replied, earning something that sounded similar to a snort from the disembodied voice.

" _*S_ _nort*_ You know you can't control a beast like her. She'd rip you apart if you even tried." He teased, amusement in his tone. I rolled my eyes in response.

"You know what I mean. I'll be able to fix her issue better if I know what's going on in her weird, human brain. It would certainly keep things running smoothly with the mission." I retorted, trying to find something actually useful. While browsing the links, I found a words that seemed familiar; sadness. But the page didn't really elaborate on what the emotion was or how to cure it.

"I think this is what the Gaz-partner said she was feeling. Computer, pull up more information on the emotion of sadness." I commanded, crossing my arms impatiently as I waited. I was greeted with the definition of the word and a few online journals that talked about experiences that caused the feeling of sadness. After about an hour of reading with little luck, I was about ready.

"Well, this may tell me what the problem is, but how do I _fix_ it?" I growled to myself, plopping down onto the couch in frustration.

"From my understanding, human emotions don't work like that. You can't just fix their feelings, but you can comfort the person." The AI chimed in. My brow furrowed slightly at the statement.

"Comfort? What's that?" I asked, thoroughly confused. I'd heard the word before, but I'd never had to use it in conversation or understood what it was.

"It can be many things, but to give a general idea, it usually involves physical contact and reassurance." Computer clarified, making me frown a bit in distaste.

"That sounds horrible. Is that really the only way to fix this?" I asked, hoping there might me some other solution to the Earth-child's problem.

"Comfort, not fix. And basically, yes. For something involving lost love and ruined bonds, physical and verbal reassurance are key to recovery." I sighed in aggravation but resigned to the idea of comforting the Gaz-human.

"I see...computer, bring up examples of comforting and the type of physical contact humans use for this issue." I said, reclining back into the couch. While there were a few articles that detailed what comforting was and how to do it, more often than these were pictures. Pictures of humans looking much like Gaz had earlier, and another human with them, touching them or holding them close. Their arms were wrapped around one another, heads resting on the other's shoulder. I scrunched up my face in disgust and groaned to myself.

"Ugh, why do I have to be so... _close_ to her? She'll probably kill me halfway through! Getting so close to the enemy goes against my invader training!" I muttered to myself, no longer sure that this was worth my time or effort.

But she wasn't really the enemy anymore, was she? She was my partner now, and it's my job to make sure we are successful in our mission. If that means having to force myself into a uncomfortable situation for the time being, so be it.

* * *

**A/N: GUYS I THOUGHT OF AN IDEA. LIKE I THOUGHT, "OH, I KNOW A SIMPLE WAY FOR ZIM AND GAZ TO WEAKEN THE PLANET. THEY'LL JUST KILL ALL THE BEES." THEN TO MY FUCKING HORROR, I REALIZED THAT'S BASICALLY THE PLOT OF BEE MOVIE. SOMEONE STOP ME BEFORE I DO SOMETHING AWFUL TO RUIN THIS STORY.**


	13. Love Me In Prayer, Fear Me When the Hymns End

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So last week i accidentally forgot to post the chapter that was supposed to go before this, so for those of you reading exclusively on AO3, you didn't see chapter 12 where shit first hit the fan, so please be sure to go back and read it to have a little more context for this chapter and a small bit of information about Zim.

_I'm re-reading the letters you wrote me_

_I'm searching and scanning for answers_  
_In every line_  
_For some kind of sign_  
_And when you were mine_  
_The world seemed to burn_

 _You have torn it all apart_  
_I am watching it burn_  
_~Burn - Hamilton~_

* * *

**The Next Day**

"I don't understand why you insist on coming with me." I growled as we climbed the stairs outside of the school entrance.

"I'm accompanying you in case things...escalate and you need back up." The invader replied.

"I don't need back up, you doof. I'm perfectly capable of handling this alone." I grumbled back as we enter the double doors of the school. Right as we neared Oliver's locker, I could see him with Zita, on the cusp of kissing. But Zita stopped in her tracks when we made eye contact and pulled away from Oliver. The teen cocked his head to the side in confusion and jumped when he turned to see me standing behind him.

"Gaz, hey! I didn't know you were coming to visit!" Oliver greeted with a smile. His cracking voice gave him away though and I could tell that on some level, he knew I was here to kick his ass. Zim followed silently as I approached Oliver and Zita, I could sense the delight he felt knowing Oliver was about to be slaughtered.

"Don't 'hey' me, you piece of shit!" I hissed venomously, curling my hands into fists. My target's eyes widened in fear as I cornered him against a locker. I shot my hand out and wrapped it around his throat, keeping him from running away. Everyone knew what was about to happen, and the smart students promptly left, while others stayed to see how Oliver would fair against my wrath. "How long did you expect to get away with this before I caught you?" I growled, flashing my teeth in a vicious display.

"Gaz, I-I dont know what you're-" I cut him off with a dry chuckle. I glared up at him, my eyes burning with fury.

"I saw you the other day with Zita, and not even a minute ago you were about to kiss her. You're not very discreet when you think no one's watching." I teased, holding on to what little composure I had left. Before he could answer I continued. "Didn't you know what would happen when I found out? I knew you weren't very bright, but I didn't think you could be _this_ idiotic." I snarled, tightening my grip on his throat, choking him now. The panic in his eyes didn't make me feel better like I thought it would.

"I-I didn't mean to!" Oliver defended, making me raise a skeptical brow. I laughed again, even though it felt like my chest was collapsing.

"We both know that isn't true." I spat, trying to keep the shake out of my voice. I hoped to God he didn't see the tears beginning to form in the corners of my eyes. I brought my face closer to his, pressing down on his throat twice as hard as before. "I just want to know why...why you thought it was necessary to do this. Why did you bother staying with me if you wanted someone else?" I whispered, glaring as hard as I could at him. Zita took a few steps towards us.

"That's enough, Gaz! You're hurting him, let him go!" She shrieked, tears of panic and fear streaming down her cheeks, taking her mascara with them.

"You'll be next if you don't shut your mouth." I barked at her over my shoulder before turning my attention back to Oliver. "You made me like you, made me trust you, I _loved_ you...and I'll make you pay for making me feel anything for you at all." I breathed, watching his eyes start to flutter and tear up. A hand gently grabbed my wrist, pulling me back to reality, but I didn't look away from Oliver's pleading eyes. A voice sounded right against my ear, startling me slightly.

"Gaz-partner, you have better things to do than waste your fury on this stink-pig." Zim assured me quietly. I set my jaw and inhaled sharply before releasing my victim with a frustrated growl. I ripped my arm out of the invader's grip and quickly pushed my way through the the small circle that had accumulated around us. I headed for the doors, feeling the tears finally escape.

* * *

**Zim's POV**

Gaz released the boy from her iron grip, letting him fall haphazardly to the floor. She tore her arm away from me angrily, stomping away without another word. I stood there awkwardly, watching her disappear through the double doors at the end of the hall. All the while listening to Oliver coughing and sputtering as he caught his breath, and his little friend crying miserably next to him. It occurred to me that I should probably follow the Gaz-beast, but there was something I had to do before I could go after her. I turned my attention to the stink-pig on the floor, my lip curling in discontent at the site of him.

"You should be thankful that Zim stepped in when he did. I think we both know very well that she wouldn't have stopped herself until you were dead. Not that you didn't deserve it, but be glad you survived." I growled scornfully, glaring down at him. I didn't receive a reply and decided I had given my partner more than a good enough head start, making my way to the exit.

**Gaz's POV**

**Stupid. Fucking. Tears. Stupid. Fucking. Emotions! Stupid, stupid girl! Why did you get yourself into this?** _I don't know._ **Was it worth it in the end, you idiot?** _No._ **You knew this would happen, so why are you crying?** _It hurts..._ **What good will crying do you?** _I don't-_ I heard Zim call out for me but I didn't wait for him to catch up to me. "Wait for Zim, Gaz-partner!" He shouted from a distance behind me. I didn't listen, wiping away the pesky drops from my face, only to have more take their place.

"Stop following me! Just go home, Zim!" I yelled over my shoulder, wrapping my arms around myself.

"You are Zim's partner, it is Zim's job to ensure your well-being. I have read that emotions are a powerful thing and that they can have a physical effect on humans. You are no exception, even if you pretend to be." He stated firmly, stopping in front of me. Zim placed his hands on my shoulders to get me to look at him and I immediately pulled away from his touch.

"I don't need you here, okay?! I don't _need_ you to ensure my well-being! I don't need _you_! I don't-I don't need **anyone** , alright? Just go away!" I shouted, shoving the Irken away from me. He stumbled back a few steps, a look of disbelief on his face. He frowned at me after a moment and I figured he had finally gotten the picture that I didn't want him anywhere near me. But instead of leaving like I had hoped he would, Zim came forward, the irritated expression set on his face. Without warning, the alien swiftly reached his hand around the back of my head, his fingers settling in my hair, gripping the strands tightly. I tried to yell at him and pull away, but before I could he had pulled me against his chest. My brow furrowed in confusion as I began to process the act. What the hell was he trying to do? I wedged my hands between his lithe frame and my own, attempting to pry myself away from him. But he only held me tighter, defiantly pulling me closer.

"You're too stubborn for such a small thing." He grumbled. I growled in frustration but my efforts were pointless. I stopped for a moment, having exhausted myself. I rested against him, breathing heavily, tired of fighting. Once I had relaxed a bit, his grip on my hair loosened, no longer needing to hold me in place. "Zim knows that you humans find comfort in physical closeness. I don't see why though, I find it rather _un_ comfortable." He said, making me frown.

"Then why don't you just let me go!?" I snarled, trying again to wriggle out of his arms. He quickly counteracted my struggling and held me tightly again. Why was this moron trying to comfort me? Why would a supposedly cold, unfeeling soldier bred to destroy planets attempt to comfort someone who was meant to be the enemy? _I'm not the enemy anymore,_ I reminded myself. I was an ally now, and as backwards as his ideas on humans were, he was doing his best to make this work.

"Once you've calmed down, you'll be free to go." He told me simply. This only made me angrier and I bared my teeth, finally pulling away enough to be able to look up at him.

"I _am_ calm!" I growled through my clenched teeth. He shook his head at me, smirking slightly.

"I know you well enough to see you are the complete opposite of calm at the moment." He replied, forcing me to relax against him once more. "You're sad, and while I don't understand what that is, I know it isn't good. So let me help." I felt the tears start up again and sniffed, earning an involuntary flinch from Zim. He tightened the embrace once more and placed his face in the hair on top of my head. After what seemed like an eternity of the two of us standing there, the invader pulled away and looked down at me. I returned the stare without a word before actually speaking.

"This never happened." I told him with a pointed glare. He only nodded in agreement before turning and walking away, like nothing had happened. This confused me beyond anything else and I decided to go inside. Once inside, I raced up the stairs to my room, passing Dib on the way.

"Hey, woah, Gaz what's going on? What's the matter?"

He called after me in confusion. I didn't answer, slamming the door so hard that it rattled on its hinges. I pressed my back against the the cool wood and slid down slowly, my hands yanking at fistfuls of hair. I cried silently for a brief moment, before letting out a long, piercing sob that might have shocked me had I not been completely shattered in that moment. I didn't bother silencing myself, and I didn't bother answering the pounding against my door. I just wanted to destroy everything; every memory of him, every kiss, every second wasted on him. I wanted to destroy him, I wanted to destroy myself, I wanted everything in flames. I wanted to burn all the gifts, the dried out bouquets, the cards and the letters. Everything he ever touched in my room, I wanted it gone. The sheets, the pillows, the blanket, and me. I wanted to set fire to it all and burn along with it.

Shaking, I stood and started to get undressed. When I went to take my necklace off, it was gone. _Gone?! That can't be, I always wear it! I was wearing it today too, I'm sure of it. Where did it go?_ I couldn't have misplaced it, I didn't take it off at all. I pushed the panic aside for the moment and got ready to take a shower. I had the unbearable urge to clean myself, to wash Oliver off my skin. I cringed against the steaming hot water but I refused to change the temperature, anything less than this wouldn't be enough to make me feel clean.

My skin turned beet red from the rough scrubbing and hot water I forced myself to endure. I couldn't bring myself to stay standing, opting to curl up in a ball at the bottom of the tub. I could still hear the banging and yelling on the other side of my bedroom door but continued to ignore it. It didn't take as long as I would have liked, but the water eventually ran cold, and I knew I had to get out if I didn't want to develop hyperthermia. And though the idea was a tempting one, I reluctantly turned the water off and stepped out of the tub.

I wrapped myself in a towel and glared at my reflection. After a couple more minutes of just standing in my bathroom, I decided to answer my brother's pleading. I unlocked the door and swung it open, looking up at my panicked big brother with dull eyes. Dib instantly took me into his arms, obviously not caring if I got his clothes wet. I returned his embrace with one arm, the other stuck between us to ensure my towel stayed wrapped around me.

"Jesus, Gaz, you can't scare me like that! I thought...I thought you had another relapse." He whispered, holding me tighter. I cringed at the word, but he wasn't far off. I still felt the desire to hurt myself sometimes, and today was no exception. But I kept telling myself that it wouldn't solve anything, and it would only bring the people I love down with me. It was the only thing that kept me strong at times like these. A few tears of guilt slipped from my eyes and I shook my head.

"I've been clean for two years, I can't give up when I've already come so far." I told him, hoping to reassure him. Dib finally stepped back, looking down at me with worried eyes.

"Do you want to talk about it?" He asked, hopeful. He knew I would say no almost every time, but for the rare times that I _did_ want to discuss my issues, he made sure to ask. I sniffed and nodded. Once I was dressed, I let Dib into my room and we sat on the bed. I told him everything. I told him about the strange behavior, the lying, the sneaking around, the cheating. My brother was furious to say the least and spoke up once I'd finished talking.

"Do you want me to beat him up?" He inquired seriously. I was sure he would beat Oliver to a pulp even without me asking, and I chuckled in response.

"Yeah, actually, that'd be great. If you knock any teeth out, you should let me keep them as a souvenir." I joked, giving Dib a small smile. He smiled back and nodded.

"Will do. Are you gonna be alright?" He questioned, looking worried again. I nodded my head and clapped a hand on his shoulder.

"I'll be fine. Now, get out. I'm going to bed." I growled, narrowing my eyes at my big-headed brother. He just shook his head, still smiling.

"Alright, goodnight Gaz." He said, turning the light off as he left. I didn't reply, burrowing myself under the covers.

* * *

**A/N: Blarg, I don't really know how I feel about this chapter, but here it is**


	14. A Shift In the Tides

_Yes I know I'm a wolf and I've been known to bite_  
_But the rest of my pack I have left them behind_  
_And my teeth may be sharp and I've been raised to kill_  
_But the thought of fresh meat it is making me ill_  
_So I'm telling you that you'll be safe with me._  
~I Know I'm a Wolf - Young Heretics~

* * *

**Later, At the Base...**

Zim sat at his work bench, face scrunched up in concentration and irritation as he tweaked a few things on his newest project. It had been almost too easy swiping this necklace from his partner while she was distracted. The task right now, however, was not so easy. The invader had the idea in his head that turning it into a communicator/ tracking device would benefit him, and it was proving to be more of a hassle than he had originally thought. But it was a necessary hassle, to keep tabs on the earth-girl and make sure she didn't get herself into any trouble. It wasn't long before the Irk ran out of steam, opting to sit back in his chair and ponder about the events from earlier that day.

_'She was so warm, and soft too. It wasn't nice being so close to her, but it's not like I was physically uncomfortable. At least she felt and smelt nice, though I could have done without the liquid coming from her eyes. I'd seen this in other humans, but I had never bothered to look into it. Whatever it was, it made my insides feel unsettled, and I would rather not see this happen to the Gaz-beast again.'_ The alien shook his head, trying to rid himself of the thoughts in his head. The earth-girl was starting to preoccupy his thoughts _too_ frequently, and he was now feeling as though something may be wrong within his Pak.

"Computer, scan for any unsent error messages or glitches in my Pak." Zim ordered, standing from his chair to pace around the lab. Three thick wires came down from the ceiling and connected to his Pak. After a moment, the AI beeped and relayed its findings to its master.

"No errors are present, aside from the usual." This earned a sharp glare from the Irk, but Zim said nothing in reply, seemingly ignoring the computer's words.

"However, you do seem to be displaying signs of distress." Computer continued. The invader's brow furrowed in confusion, but waved dismissively at the notion.

"You've gone crazy, Computer. Zim feels no distress!" He barked back, crossing his arms stubbornly.

"To be more precise, you're likely experiencing an emotion know by humans as sympathy." The AI clarified, only confusing the Irk even more.

"Eh? What are you going on about?" Zim demanded, looking expectantly at the ceiling for an answer.

"Sympathy, feelings of pity and sorrow for someone else's misfortune. You feel sorry for the Earthling." Computer explained in an even tone, the accusation making the invader snarl defensively.

"I do **not** feel _sorry_ for her. I feel uneasy when she's like this. She is usually so cool and collected, but these...emotions of hers seem to be getting to her, and it's starting to get to me. I feel like it's my job to fix it." Zim tried to reason, though, he didn't know if it was truly that cut and dry when it came to his intentions with Gaz. He was beginning to enjoy having her around all the time, and it was nice to have someone to brag to about his amazing planet and intellectually advanced race. And she really was helpful when he needed her assistance, on the rare occasions that he actually needed it (which was always). If computer had eyes, he probably would have been rolling them at that response.

"Why is that?" He asked, as if he hadn't already deduced the reason, even before his master could. This question stumped Zim, and he had to think for a moment to make sure he worded his reply carefully, so as not to look foolish.

"I...I don't really know. I suppose it's mostly so she won't be a hindrance to the mission, but Zim also does not want to see her so...weak. The Gaz-beast is strong, especially for a human. To see her this way makes me uncomfortable, because she is usually unfazed by most things." He finally managed to say. It didn't give away his true thoughts on the matter, something computer also knew. Sometimes he feels like his master forgets that with him connected directly to his Pak, he can practically read his thoughts. Currently, they were, _'I would have liked to have seen her tear the Earthworm to shreds and have her revenge, but even I could tell it would do more harm than good. While he may not have deserved it, Gaz cared for that pig-smelly, and destroying him would only make her emotional state worse. I regretted holding her back in the end, but perhaps if she is given proper time to cope, it'll be worth it.'_ The invader sat back at his work bench, finally regaining his will to continue his little project.

* * *

**The Following Day...**

**Gaz's POV**

After school that day, Zim and I had started walking back to his base. Half way there, I stopped in my tracks and groaned with a frown. The invader ahead of me turned to me, a brow raised in a silent question. I sighed in agitation.

"I left my essay back at my place." I huffed, crossing my arms. Normally I wouldn't mind, I could attach it tomorrow when we turned the project in at school. But Dib had been pressing me lately about wrapping up the project so I wouldn't have to hang out with Zim anymore, and it raised a new problem for the two of us. How was I supposed to help Zim plan for the invasion if Dib was constantly hounding me and watching after me? I guess I could just tell Dib that Zim and I decided to be friends or something, but I really didn't want to be considered Zim's friend, even if it was just for a ruse. The alien sighed and turned fully towards me and started walking past me. I stared at him, curious as to where he was going.

"What are you doing?" I asked, my brow furrowed in confusion as I joined his side.

"We have to grab your essay for the project, do we not?" He inquired, looking straight ahead with determination.

"Uh, yeah. But I really don't want to have you and Dib get into a cat fight." I replied with a grimace as I followed after him.

"Ah silly Earth-child, there will be no fight of the felines." He assured me with a patronizing smile, making me narrow my eyes at the idiot.

"That's...not what I meant. But whatever. Just behave yourself." I ordered, jabbing his arm with my pointer finger. The alien grinned down at me devilishly.

"When has Zim ever misbehaved?" He retorted, to which I narrowed my eyes at him. _'Only all the time,'_ I thought to myself as we rounded the corner onto my street. When we reached my home, I asked Zim to stay on the stoop.

"Stay here for a sec, so I can give Dib some kind of warning." I said, opening the front door. "Dib!" I shouted as I walked into the living room, waiting for my brother to stumble out from wherever he was hiding. I heard rushed foot steps above me that continued down the stairs as the high-strung teen skidded to a halt at the landing below the staircase.

"What's up Gaz? You alright?" He asked, slightly panicked. I clenched my teeth in anger but let my irritation go for the time being.

"I'm fine, but we have a guest." I told him vaguely, knowing this wasn't going to do me any good. Dib cocked a brow and looked around me at the figure leaning casually against the door frame. My brother's eyes narrowed into slits and he opened his mouth, ready to spit venomous words of protest and lunge at the invader. But before he could even start, I pushed him back, glaring up at him.

"Zim is coming in, and you're gonna be nice. _*punch*_ And you're gonna keep your big mouth shut _*punch*_ until he leaves. _*punch*_ Got it?" I growled fiercely, hoping to scare him out of acting like an idiot. Dib threw his hands up, trying to fend off any more blows to his body.

"OW, ow, yeah! I got it! Geez, Gaz." He whined, rubbing at his arm and chest where I had hit him.

"Good, now play nice while I go get my paper." I said, passing him to climb the stairs to my room.

**Third Person POV**

The minute Gaz was out of sight and earshot, Dib approached the invader. He hoped to intimidate the smaller being with his height, which in truth, worked. But Zim didn't show it, fighting the deep-rooted instinct to bow his head in respect to his 'superior'.

"Listen here, freak! Don't even think about _looking_ at Gaz wrong!" Dib sneered, jabbing at the alien's chest with his pointer finger. The invader scoffed and swatted the teen's hand away, glaring slightly up at Dib.

"It really is funny seeing you get so red-faced about your little sister. You should really keep your weaknesses under wraps, wouldn't want someone taking advantage of them, would you?" Zim hissed slyly, narrowing his eyes further. Dib's lip curled back in a snarl and he grabbed the Irk by the collar of his school uniform.

"If I find out you've been anything short of well behaved, I will make you suffer in ways you couldn't imagine." The human threatened, anger burning in his amber eyes, looking almost exactly like his sibling's. Again, the invader simply laughed off Dib's threats.

"Ohh, taking a page out of your precious sister's book, I see. Well, Zim hates to break it to you, but he isn't afraid of you. You may share DNA with the Gaz-beast, but you will never be as powerful or terrifying." The Irk taunted, knowing just how to piss Dib off. As if summoned upon the mention of her name, Gaz appeared quietly at the bottom of the stairs with a frown on her face.

"Zim, quit antagonizing him. Dib, get back up to your room. I'll be home later." The girl snapped, approaching the two enemies.

"Come on, let's finish this dumb project." Gaz grumbled as she dragged Zim out of the house by his tie. After a minute of leading him around like a dog on a leash, she released the invader and spoke. "Why do you feel the need to be so irksome all the time?" She accused, glaring slightly at the alien. Zim instantly smiled and chuckled.

"He just makes it too easy." He replied happily, crossing his arms as they walked. The girl chuckled a bit and sighed.

"I agree, but still. I would expect you to start acting your age at some point." Gaz teased, nudging her companion with her shoulder. Zim grinned down at her, displaying his shark-like teeth.

"Which one? Because technically, I have three." He teased, earning an eye roll from the young woman.

"Preferably the oldest one, smart ass." She snipped. A silence fell between them and Gaz's mind wandered back to the events from the day before. She felt her cheeks grow hot from embarrassment; she couldn't believe she had lost her composure in front of Zim like that. Weakness was not an option, but she had shown that she could be weak-and over something so stupid! A boy was hardly any reason to fall apart, regardless of how much she might have...loved him. The teen felt tears prick the corners of her eyes and quickly shut down that train of thought. Instead, she thought about how the invader had handled the situation.

Zim had embraced her, doing his best to comfort her, despite not knowing exactly what he was doing. He had been rigid and stiff, clearly uncomfortable in such a vulnerable position. She could tell that Irks didn't behave the same way humans do, and that maybe they didn't even feel like people do. It would explain his indifference and discomfort when confronted with human emotions. But why would he even bother to help her? It didn't make any sense to her, and she continued to try and decode his motives while finishing up the project with Zim. She sat on the floor in front of the alien, who sat on the couch, watching the muted television as Gaz placed the last stick-on letter on the poster board. She looked up at the invader, staring for a moment with her brow furrowed.

"You know you don't have to wear that in front of me, right?" She finally said, raising a brow inquisitively. The Irk blinked, confused and caught off guard by her question.

"Eh?" Gaz's face fell into an expression of slight annoyance.

"The disguise. I already know you're an alien, you don't have to hide behind that crappy façade when we're alone." She replied, smiling slightly at her jeer. The alien caught this and frowned at the teen.

"Zim's _genius_ disguise is not crappy! Are you forgetting that it has fooled your entire race for the last _seven years_?" He reminded her, pride evident in his voice. Gaz scoffed and shook her head.

"That's not much of an accomplishment when you take into consideration how gullible my entire race is." She retorted, smirking at the now pouting invader. With a sigh, Zim removed the wig and contacts, revealing his long antennae and large magenta eyes. While it wasn't hard to look at, it was a bit jarring to see him this way. She liked it though, it suited him better, she guessed.

"Y'know, you've told me almost nothing about your species or culture." She mentioned hoping to coax the secretive alien into telling her _something_. The invader paused for a moment and hummed in thought.

"What do you want to know?" He asked, looking warily at the girl on the floor. She just shrugged.

"I dunno, what do you guys like to eat?" She inquired, somewhat wanting to know.

"Snacks." Zim answered simply. Gaz just stared at him.

"O...kay, would you like to elaborate on that a little more? That's a pretty vague answer." She said, a bit irritated, and the Irk nodded.

"Far outside of your pathetic solar system, we conquered a planet and turned it into a snacking planet called 'Foodcourtia'. There, foods are sold for various races aside from Irken foods. In our case, we eat mostly sugary snacks, they keep us energized for taking over the galaxy." He explained, unnecessarily cheery about the last part. Gaz laughed a bit at that and stood up to sit on the other end of the couch.

"Weird, do you think it makes your blood taste sweet?" She joked. Zim smiled awkwardly and laughed, scooting away a bit.

"Leeeeets not find out, hm?" He suggested, seeming genuinely uncomfortable. The girl nodded in agreement.

"Are you cold blooded?" She questioned, hoping to confirm a hunch she had. When he had been holding her yesterday, he felt noticeably cold. Zim looked a bit surprised by that question and nodded slowly.

"Yes, actually. Well, at least compared to you humans we are." He told her, unsure of how she had figured that out on her own.

"Then this climate must not be very comfortable for you." She commented, crossing her legs Indian style. Again the invader nodded affirmatively.

"Zim certainly does not like the winter here, no. Zim has learned to put layers of protective clothing on to insulate heat." Gaz chuckled at this, smiling a bit.

"I can just imagine you wearing 30 sweaters." She teased. The invader scoffed and crossed his arms.

"Don't be ridiculous, I only wear 23." He corrected the teen, only making her laugh more.

"You're kidding!" Gaz exclaimed, still laughing. The alien's confidence wavered a bit at this.

"Is that a bad thing?" He inquired, worried he looked stupid.

"Well, no. It's just hilarious." She replied with a smile

"Oh." The invader said curtly, looking away in embarrassment. Gaz just briefly caught a glimpse of his face darkening, almost like he was blushing. But it was gone in an instant when he looked back at her. Her brow furrowed a bit in curiosity as she pondered what she'd seen.

"What color is your blood?" She asked bluntly, catching the Irken off guard. He stared at the teen, a bit bewildered by her question.

"These questions of yours are beginning to get...what is it, creepy?" He accused, narrowing his vibrant eyes at her. Gaz shrugged casually before replying.

"No more creepy than the questions you ask me." She countered, crossing her arms. Zim thought about this for a moment before relenting.

"Fair enough. It's a clear, pinkish color." He answered, not understanding why that was important or relevant. He decided to change the subject.

"Anymore questions?" He challenged, raising a brow at the girl. She paused for a moment as she thought to herself.

"Tell me about the Tallest." She said, a determination hidden in her voice. Again, Zim was surprised by her straightforward inquiry. He shook it off and smiled a bit.

"On Irk, rank and power are determined by height. The Tallest are, well, the Tallest Irkens on our planet. Usually they come in pairs, and since the Tallest gene can be detected during incubation, the hatchery knows to separate the pair from the rest of the embryos. Once they are hatched, they are given their Pak and given a different coding to help them prepare for their future positions as the rulers of our race. They have more elite combat training and education, and are directly linked to the Control Brains-"

"Whoa wait, 'Control Brains'? What the heck is that?" Gaz interjected, now lost and confused. Zim sighed, seemingly irritated by her interrupting.

"The Control Brains give orders to the Tallest, encode, and decide the fate of every Irken." He clarified.

"So the Control Brains are the _real_ leaders?" Gaz asked, raising a brow. The Irken shook his head.

"Not exactly, they mostly just keep the Tallest focused on the task at hand; conquering the universe." He explained. The girl pursed her lips in thought.

"The Tallest are just figureheads then. They don't make the decisions they just carry out the orders." She said, her mind drifting elsewhere. Zim shrugged, neither agreeing or disagreeing with his partner's statement.

"That's one way of putting it, I suppose. Anyway, the current Tallest are Tallest Red and Tallest Purple." He continued, earning a questioning look from the human.

"Red and Purple, huh?" She pondered, more to herself than to him.

"Yes, but for future reference, it's disrespectful to call them by just their names. It's Tallest Red, and Tallest Purple at all times." The Irken told her, wearing a stern expression. Gaz chuckled and shook her head a bit at his face.

"Right..." she drawled, pulling out her buzzing phone. It was a text from Dib, as well as a number she didn't recognize. She glanced at the time on her screen and sighed in agitation. "Time for me to go, I guess. I'll see you tomorrow, Zim." She mumbled, pulling her backpack onto her shoulders. The invader nodded and walked with her to the door. When she turned to say goodnight to him, she was pulled into an embrace like she had been the day before. Once again confused, she didn't return the physical contact. "Uh...Zim..." she began, feeling beyond uncomfortable. He pulled away, now only holding her shoulders as he looked down at her.

"Physical reassurance." He stated simply, expecting her to thank him and praise him for being so in tune with her silly human emotions. Her brow just furrowed like it had previously and she nodded back slowly.

"Uh, right. Goodnight, Zim." She said, turning to leave. Zim smirked, proud of himself, despite Gaz having not acknowledging his good work.

"Goodnight, Gaz-partner." He replied, closing the door after her. She'd realize his genius soon enough, he assured himself as he went back down to his lab to continue his work on her necklace.

* * *

**Author's Note: Well, that chapter took forever and a fucking day to finally finish. Sorry it took so long.**


	15. Compromise

_Down to you_  
_You're pushing and pulling me down to you_  
_But I don't know what I_  
_Now when I caught myself_  
_I had to stop myself_  
_From saying something_  
_That I should've never thought_  
_~I Caught Myself - Paramore~_

* * *

**Gaz's POV**

I opened my messages as I sat on my bed, getting ready to go to sleep. I finally looked at the one from the unknown number, and my jaw tightened.

_'Gaz, please, just talk to me about this! We can work it out! I love you...'_

I growled audibly at the text, and quickly deleted it from my phone. _'I should have blocked his damn number instead of just deleting his contact. Whatever, it doesn't matter anymore. I'm done with his bullshit,'_ I told myself as I shoved the device under my pillow and I layed myself down. "Good riddance." I whispered to myself, closing my eyes.

**Zim's POV**

I lay there, more awake then I'd ever been before. I couldn't stop thinking about the Earth-girl, it seemed. There were small things about the human that I hadn't payed attention to before, which now seemed to stand out. Like the way her mauve hair smelled faintly of Earth flowers. Or the fact that those delicate little claws of hers were always painted black and sharpened into lethal points. And how she looked like it would hurt to touch her, when in reality, she was so soft and warm. But most of all, it was the way her mouth looked. Whether it was smiling or pouting, snarling or frowning, it was a fascinating feature to look at. Luckily, since this curiosity began, she had yet to catch me looking. But it was starting to eat away at me, I want to know more about the Earth-girl. I want to know if she looks like the females in our school books. Perhaps if she did, it would stop this growing infatuation with her. That, or it could make it flourish, and I wasn't sure which was worse.

**The Next Day, Third Person POV**

Zim and Gaz walked in silence, on their way back from school for the day. The invader glanced over at the human girl for what must have been the hundredth time during their walk and finally swallowed down his nerves in order to address her. "Gaz-partner, I believe it would be very beneficial for Zim's research if you would provide him with some of your DNA and allow him to examine you. Books can only do so much..." He said, thinking he was quite clever for tricking the human like this. The teen seemed unmoved by Zim's words and continued to play her game.

"Fine, I don't see why not." She replied dully, not bothering to look up from her device. The Irk's face fell a bit; he had expected more of a fight from Gaz, and even looked forward to the banter he would have to exchange with her in order to get her to agree. "But you have to let me examine you as well at some point. You've told me absolutely nothing about your anatomy, so it's only fair." She added, glaring a bit at the alien from behind her screen. Zim blinked, stunned momentarily by her request, but he shook it off. He frowned at the girl and crossed his arms stubbornly.

"Absolutely not, you have no reason to learn about Zim's magnificent anatomy!" He exclaimed defensively, raising his chin into the air in a dramatic show of protest. Gaz rolled her eyes and steered herself towards the walkway of her house, still enamored by her GameSlave. She only put the device away when she reached her front door and opened it.

"Look, if this is only going to benefit you, then you can count me out. Come find me when you get over yourself." She growled, looking back at the Irken before slamming the front door in his face. He sighed to himself and headed back to the sidewalk. That could have gone better...perhaps he shouldn't be so stubborn when it comes to giving the girl her way. Maybe he should have just swallowed his pride for the sake of making this go smoothly.

He was completely beside himself when Gaz went so far as to ignore him the next day. He was filled with rage, but when he expressed this to his partner, she simply raised a brow at him and walked away. _Why that little-! Ugh, how could someone be so infuriatingly stubborn?_ How _dare_ she ignore the mighty Zim? Bah, who cares! He doesn't need her, she'll be crawling back soon enough with an apology, thought Zim. But as the classes passed, it seemed less and less likely that the girl would be doing any crawling. But the invader refused to give in either! He would never stoop so low as to ask a filthy human for anything more than once!

Another day passed, with not so much as a glance his way from Gaz and the invader was on the verge of ripping out his antennae. How could that stink beast treat him like this? They were supposed to be partners, and now it was like he didn't even exist! Damn the little she-devil for ignoring him like this! Just when Zim was about to give up and seek her out, his doorbell rang, causing him to perk up hopefully. A conceited smile peeled across his face as he took his time leaving the lab to answer the door. He _knew_ she'd be back, he thought, chuckling to himself. His face fell to a blank expression before opening the door, Gaz standing before him with an equally as disinterested look on her face.

"What can Zim do for you, Gaz-partner?" The alien asked, taking care to keep his tone even. The girl's brow furrowed and she rolled her eyes as she brushed passed the Irk. Once inside the base, she turned to her partner, her arms crossed impatiently.

"Very little, I assume. However, I came over because I figured you've just about lost your mind waiting for me to acknowledge your existence once more." She stated plainly, causing the invader to gape a bit, taken aback by the accuracy of her words. There wasn't any need for her to know that, though.

"I was doing no such thing! Zim waits around for no one!" He shot back defensively, narrowing his eyes at the earth female. Gaz didn't seem the least bit convinced and this only angered Zim further.

"Right, well, since I know you've learned your lesson to not push me around, I was hoping we could strike up a deal." The teen said, ignoring his outburst and waiting for a response from the Irk. But she got nothing, and continued with her proposition.

"I'll let you examine me, but you must promise to allow me the same liberty. Of course, I won't be needing any of your DNA, given I don't have the proper tools at my disposal to examine or test it. Take it, or leave it." Gaz offered, her tone stern and unwavering. Zim frowned and pondered the deal, he wasn't entirely comfortable with the idea of his partner being allowed to know so much about his species. But if she had no way of examining his DNA, then this trade should be rather harmless on his end. With a sigh, Zim resigned and spoke.

"Fine, I will allow you to examine Zim as well. But it has to be external only! No dissection, or removing of Zim's organs." He added the last part, pointing accusingly at her. If she was anything like her sibling, she would no-doubt try something invasive. The girl scoffed at the notion.

"I wasn't planning on cutting you open, not unless I knew you would survive. So if that's your only condition, than I guess the same goes for you. No trying to cut me open." She replied, glaring back at the invader. Zim gave a simple nod and turned on his heel towards the kitchen.

"Agreed. Let us go down to the lab, then." He said, stepping inside the elevator/toilet. Gaz squeezed in next to him, her ears burning from the closeness. She was still thoroughly annoyed with the alien, and the last thing she wanted at the moment was to be pressed up against him. Zim obviously wasn't too keen on the situation either, but said nothing. Opting to break the awkward silence, the girl spoke up.

"So your just gonna take my blood for today and we'll do the examination another time?" She asked, hoping that was the plan. If not, she wasn't sure she would be able to stay long enough for the examination, since Dib had been on her ass lately about being home for dinner with their "father". She didn't see what the fuss was about, since it was really just a floating hologram, prerecorded by their father.

"That would probably be best, since we don't have sufficient time to do a complete examination." The Irk answered, letting Gaz step out into the lab first. As strange as it sounded, the place seemed to look different every time she came down here. There were a few metal tables that hadn't been here the last time, as well as bright lights hanging over them. She looked over to see Zim gesture to a chair for her to sit in while he wheeled a tray of tools over. She walked over and eyed the "chair" warily. It looked like it was more for restraining than it was for medical purposes but she took a seat anyway. Nerves finally began to set in as the anticipation built up while Zim prepared everything.

There were various needles and cannulas of varying sizes and she felt her anxiety sore even higher at the sight. She wasn't afraid of needles per say, she didn't mind shots or having blood work done. But this was a whole other story, because it looked like he would be taking more than just a couple tubes-worth of blood. Zim rolled up the sleeves of his school uniform and removed his thick black gloves, replacing them with a disposable pair. The silence was extremely unnerving as he circled a small metal cuff around her upper arm. It latched itself closed and began to apply pressure on her arm until she could feel her heartbeat there. The alien carefully prodded at the vein in the crook of her elbow with his finger before cleaning the surface. Gaz glanced up at her partner nervously as he grabbed one of the larger cannulas.

"You know what you're doing, right?" She asked suddenly, her heart thudding with unspoken terror. The invader chuckled and shook his head at her like she was insane for asking.

"Don't insult me, Gaz-partner. Of course Zim knows what he's doing!" He assured her with a confident smile, positioning the needle on the skin. Gaz quickly turned her head as she felt the needle break the skin, not wanting to show any reaction on her face as she clenched her other fist. Once the tiny tube leading to the bag was taped to her forearm, she let out a breath and relaxed her hand as she relaxed against the back of the chair. She looked up, but didn't meet his gaze, as he was busy staring down at something. She followed Zim's eyes to her arm and didn't understand what was so interesting until he spoke.

"What are those little lines across your arm?" He asked, running a finger down the rows of faint scar tissue. The girl's lips tightened in discomfort, unwilling to answer. "Are they a common feature on you humans?" The alien pried further, earning a tired sigh from Gaz.

"No, they're scars, Zim." She replied, her voice void of emotion. The invader scrutinized the tiny lines for a moment longer, intrigued by them.

"Scars? From what? They're so thin and precise, were you attacked?" He inquired, squatting down to look at them more closely. Uncomfortable with Zim's sudden curiosity, she covered them with her hand.

"It's not something we should discuss right now. Maybe once we get to know each other better, we can talk about it. But for now, let's just get this over with." She said, an edge in her voice that was easy for the Irk to pick up on. He didn't understand exactly why, but he knew better than to press her on the matter and let the subject drop. He nodded and turned his attention to the bag slowly filling up with the human's blood. It took about 15 minutes for the bag to fill completely. Once it was full, Zim carefully removed cannula and pressed a clear strip to the entrance wound. While the invader cleaned up everything and put the blood away in a refrigerator of sorts, Gaz stood from the chair, only to crumple to the floor moments later, knocking over the tray in the process. The loud clanging caught the alien's attention and he turned to see what had caused it, only to find Gaz convulsing on the floor. Zim's eyes widened in shock and fear as he rushed to her side, pulling the girl into his arms.

"Gaz-partner! Gaz-partner, are you alright? Gaz!" He called, almost frantic, but she was unresponsive, her eyes rolled back and unfocused. But just quickly as the tremors had started, they subsided and the girl slowly came out of the fog in her mind.

"Gaz-partner! Are you alright? What on Irk happened to you?" He demanded, shaking her a bit. She blinked away the tears that formed in her eyes and slowly found her partners face.

"I don't...I don't know, I just felt really sick and dizzy when I tried to stand and...I don't remember anything that happened after that." Though still fearful, the alien let out a breath of relief.

"Why didn't you say something sooner?" He snarled, picking her up as she started to slouch to the side.

"I-it was just really sudden. I thought maybe I just got up too fast. Did I pass out?" She questioned, weakly wrapping her arms around his neck. The Irk didn't reply, not sure how to answer that question.

"You're paler than usual, you aren't going to die are you?!" The invader demanded worriedly. Gaz chuckled a bit.

"You say that like you would actually care if I died." She joked, causing Zim to frown in irritation. Why wouldn't she just get a grip?! He stands up, carrying her to the examination table.

"You're not worth anything to me dead, stupid worm!" He hissed, glaring scornfully down at the teen.

"Ouch." She pouted, her eyes drifting closed.

"Tell Zim how to fix you!" The Irk ordered angrily, tightening his grip on his partner.

"Like I would know? I've never lost blood like this before." She said, her eyes refusing to stay focused as she became even more drowsy. He set her down on an examining table, still panicking.

"Computer, run a scan!" He yelled at the AI. A red grid of light descended and covered the human's body for a good minute before disappearing.

"Subject is stable. She seems to have had a vasovagal response to having her blood taken too quickly." The AI informed his master. Zim's brow furrowed in confusion at the statement.

"Vasovagal response?" He repeated, unsure of what it meant.

"In other words, she fainted. Her blood pressure lowered too quickly in this instance. It rarely happens to humans while donating blood or plasma, though it still occurs from time to time. She will come to in a bit. In the mean time, get some water and something salty for her to eat." Zim flinched at the mention of water but left without a word to collect the things Computer had told him to get. The invader returned several minutes later with the supplies. He had to purchase the water with Earth monies at the convenience store down the street, but he came back as quickly as he could. He set the things he'd gathered down by the table and looked down at the earth-girl with concern.

"Now what?" He asked hastily. Gaz was still struggling to stay awake as the invader began to slap her cheeks lightly to keep her awake.

"No, no, no, Gaz-partner, do not die in front of Zim! Your idiotic brother will skin me!" The girl chuckled weakly and grabbed the alien's face in an effort to get him to focus, pulling him close. He felt his face flush at the contact and closeness to the humans face. She noticed this but assumed it was nothing, just her drowsy mind playing tricks on her. It felt like an eternity that they stayed like this, his forehead pressed to hers, her breath hitting his lips. He held his breath in response, unable to do much else. It was like he was frozen to the spot, paralyzed by her eyes.

"You heard Computer, Zim. I'm not dying, I just need time to replace all that blood you took. I'm tired anyway, so just let me sleep and I'll be right as rain." She told him gently. This calm tone shook the invader, but he still cringed at the idiom.

"That doesn't sound very pleasent." He murmured, barely able to hear his voice over the thrumming of his heart.

"Have you ever known me to be pleasant?" The girl retorted, raising her brow at him. He closed his eyes and smiled a bit at the question.

"You're sure you won't die if Zim leaves you on your own?" He asked once more, finally able to pull away. The girl nodded, smiling back.

"I'm pretty sure. Now, go run your stupid tests on my blood. I'll be pissed if you don't do _something_ with all that blood." She ordered, managing to glare at him one last time before surrendering to her woosiness. Zim said nothing more and reluctantly left Gaz by herself on the examination table. Once out of sight, the Irk held his face similarly to the way the Earth girl had only moments ago, feeling a strange, warm sensation coursing through his body. What was that she did? Was it some sort of defense mechanism humans use to immobilize they're prey or something? It was so strange and unfamiliar, but it felt...nice. Irk, she was warm, warmer than him, and it was oddly soothing to feel her skin against his own. The invader was beginning to understand why humans craved closeness the way they did.

After a few hours of testing and research, Zim came to check on Gaz. She was still fast asleep on the table, but she looked extremely uncomfortable. He sighed to himself as he picked her up, careful not to wake her and made his way to the elevator. He could just barely fit the two of them in there like this and watched her face anxiously, hoping she would stay asleep. And he was thankful when he was able to successfully place her on the couch without her stirring. At the sound of small, clanking footsteps, he turned to see Gir approaching. Zim pressed a finger to his lips, like he had seen many times on Earth television, and the little robot nodded in understanding.

"Master, you should give her one of our blankies!" He suggested quietly with a dumb smile. The alien stared at the SIR unit in confusion.

"Why?" He asked simply, truly confused by his companion's thought process.

"Humans wuuuuuuv blankets, master!" The robot explained cheerfully. Zim sighed and shook his head.

"Fine, Gir. Go get a blanket for the human." He commanded, taking a seat against the arm of the couch while he waited for the small bot to return. Gir came back moments later with what was easily the warmest blanket they had and clumsily threw it on top of the human. Zim got to his feet and straightened the blanket out over his partner before taking up on the armrest once more to watch over the Earth-girl. Gir made himself at home on the space between Gaz's head and the back of the couch. He turned the TV on, waiting happily as the shows went on without any sound. Zim looked over at the human girl and watched her face as it relaxed once again, smiling to himself.


	16. Gasoline

_Dancing on the line of the great divide_  
_Wash my hands, turn my back_  
_I don't need the memories we had_  
_I'm leaving you behind_  
_Across the great divide_

_~The Great Divide - Rebecca Black~_

* * *

I woke up with a splitting headache, and no idea where I was. The first thing I saw when I opened my eyes was the color blue. Just a glowing blue that I slowly recognized as Girs eyes hovering directly over mine.

"What are you doing?" I growled, glaring at the malfunctioning SIR unit. He smiled down at me and giggled, pulling back a bit.

"Hehehe, I'm playin'z wiffs ya hair! It's so pretty braided!" Confused, I sent a hand up to my hair to feel it. Sure enough, all of my hair was pulled into two Dutch braids.

"You little shit, I haven't had my hair braided since second grade." I hissed, shooting up from my resting position on the couch, and instantly regretting it as another sharp pain reminded me that, yes, my headache was still present. I was greeted with the stare of another lifeform. My brows creased in confusion to see Zim perched, much like a cat, on the armrest of the couch.

"It's good that you are finally awake, Zim was beginning to get bored waiting for you to recover from the other night." He addressed me calmly, or rather, he was feigning calmness. I didn't acknowledge this though and simply hummed in reply.

"What time is it?" I grunted, glancing at the small bruise in the crook of my elbow. The clear strip he had put there was gone now surprisingly, maybe it fell off while I was sleeping.

"6:30." The invader replied quickly. I sighed, not wanting to get up, but knowing I had to if I wanted to make it to work on time.

"Gross." I mumbled as I rolled off the couch, stood, and stretched.

"I've got to open today, so I'd better head out." I told Zim through a yawn. The alien stood as well, looking perplexed.

"Eh?" I closed my eyes for a moment, resisting the desire to roll them.

"I have a job, Zim. At the skating rink in town. I have to open and prep the snack bar this morning." I explained, looking for my backpack. I picked it up and fished around inside it for my phone. Dib had called me almost 60 times throughout the night and I shook my head with a smile. _He must be furious,_ I thought with a chuckle.

"You work as a food service drone?" The Irk suddenly piped up. I straightened up and threw my bag over my shoulder as I walked towards the door.

"Something like that, yeah. Anyways, I'll see you later. Thanks for almost killing me, by the way." I teased, looking back at Zim. He looked a bit bashful and smiled awkwardly at me.

"To be fair, you only fainted." He pointed out, and I smiled.

"Whatever, that's the last time I let you poke me with needles." I said, closing the door behind me. I didn't want to walk home, mostly because I didn't want to deal with Dib being overbearing this early in the morning. So instead of using the front door, I climbed the tree in front of my window and crawled through it as quietly as I could. I tumbled to the floor silently, but a bit graceless. I quickly got changed, leaving my hair in the surprisingly neat looking braids and jumped back out my window.

**Later**

"Jesus Christ, someone fucking end me already," I grumbled to myself as I carried four 10 pound bags of shredded cheese out of the freezer and brought them to the snack bar. I dropped them loudly on the counter and glanced over at the clock, wilting a bit in disappointment. I still had two more hours in this hell hole and they weren't going to be easy. No, weekends were absolute shit due to birthday parties, which meant a higher demand of food and drinks on top of the usual stuff we had to do. And there was no such thing as slowing down on days like these. Just as I was about to put the bags of cheese in the fridge behind the snack bar, I noticed a figure approaching.

"Hey Gaz, how are you?" A cheerful voice called, matching perfectly with the overly cheerful girl in front of me. I sighed and forced a small smile.

"Sweaty and grumpy," I replied with a laugh. She smiled back and leaned on the counter.

"The usual I see." She commented, knowing how I got during weekend shifts. I simply nodded back in response.

"Yep, what's up, Jamie?" I inquired, raising a brow. Her presence so soon before her shift could only mean one thing; she was gonna bail.

"Well, I kind of need a favor." She began shyly, batting her eyelashes like she always did when she asked me to cover for her.

"How long is your shift?" I droned, already knowing the routine. She blinked at me in shock but recovered quickly and smiled at me.

"Just from the end of your shift to 6!" She said excitedly, knowing I would accept whatever she told me. I sighed and popped my neck, making Jamie wince at the loud sound.

"That's fine. I need the money anyhow." I replied tiredly. I honestly needed a different job, serving people with a smile wasn't really working out all that well. Jamie clapped happily.

"Oh, thank you so much!" She exclaimed, but her face fell after a moment and she moved to wrap her hand around mine. I had to remind myself not to snatch it back from her but looked at her in confusion. "And I...I heard about what happened with _you know who_...I'm sorry." She told me in a sincere, sympathetic tone. I wanted to tell her to fuck off, that it wasn't a big deal, that it was none of her God damn business, but I just shook my head and pulled my hand back.

"Don't worry, he got what he deserved." I assured her. Truth be told, he deserved much worse, and if it hadn't been for that damn alien, I'd have happily put Oliver in his place. But I didn't much feel like tracking him down just to beat him to a bloody pulp. Jamie just laughed, shaking her head.

"If he ended up even half as bad as Iggens did, then I have no doubt he got what he deserved." She joked as she walked away from the counter. I sighed a bit in relief once she was out of sight and returned to stocking duty.

Near the end of my shift, things began to die down and I started doing errands around the rink. I was changing out the prizes at the ticket counter while another coworker watched over the snackbar. I nearly jumped when I heard a hand slap down on the counter and whirled around to yell at whoever had the gull to catch me off guard. However, the angry words I had prepared stuck in my throat when I saw who was the culprit.

"I would like to purchase one snack, please." The invader stated, having obviously rehersed this sentence multiple times in order to get it right. I rolled my eyes at Zim and walked up to the end of the counter he stood in front of.

"Well, you're at the wrong counter if you want a snack. The snack bar is over there, you goof." I teased, resting my chin on my hand. He blinked, not sure what to say in response and looked at the menu from across the room. He sneered at quite a few items that he looked over and shook his head.

"Eh, what is the, 'funnel cake fries' supposed to be?" He inquired warily. I scrunched up my nose a bit in disgust.

"I wouldn't eat those to save my life. I wouldn't eat anything off this menu if I'm being honest. Not even the pizza can be trusted." I whispered, my voice haunted with regret.

"Never mind, Zim is not willing to risk his internal organs for the sake of bothering you." He decided, putting the money in his hand back in his pocket. I chuckled and nodded in agreement.

"Smart choice, space bean. But what are you doing here? I know you didn't come to just say 'hi'." I confronted him, receiving a shrug back from the Irk.

"I came to make sure you're still in a stable condition after what happened last night." He explained, almost too defensively. I smirked a little at that.

"I also came to bring you these. Computer said you needed them but I didn't have the chance to give them to you." He said thrusting a water bottle and a bag of...something in front of me. I picked up the bag, trying to read the language printed all over it.

"Are these snacks from space?" I asked incredulously, narrowing my eyes at the item he had given me. Zim nodded simply before elaborating.

"Computer told me that you needed water and something 'salty' to eat after passing out the way you did. This is all I had in the base. I had to purchase the water elsewhere, for obvious reasons, I don't keep water in my base." He replied nonchalantly, looking quite proud of himself. I rolled my eyes but thanked him, regardless of his stupid attitude.

"Here's this by the way," the invader started rooting around in his pocket for something before holding his hand out. His fingers unfurled to reveal my skull pendant. I looked up at him with wide eyes, shocked that he had it.

"You left it at Zim's base." The Irk said, barely able to finish his sentence before I snatched the necklace out of his hand. I glared angrily at the alien, knowing very well that I hadn't forgotten a damn thing at his base, let alone something I never take off my person.

"I'm not stupid, Zim. I didn't leave this at your base, you _stole_ it! What did you do to it?" I hissed, examining the pendent for any obvious signs of tampering.

"Zim did nothing to it!" He sputtered back, obviously trying to deceive me. I clenched my jaw and grabbed Zim by the collar of his tunic, nearly pulling him completely over the counter.

"You're a terrible liar, fess up, before I make you." I threatened, feeling my face flush with rage. The invader grabbed desperately at my wrists, trying to keep himself steady.

"Ah! Okay okay, Zim may have... _tweaked_ it a bit." He confessed with a small nervous laugh at the end. I frowned more, becoming suspicious.

"What do you mean by 'tweaked'?" I demanded, tightening my grip on his collar. The alien winced a bit, but answered.

"I just made it useful, for the both of us. You can use it to communicate with me." He explained, trying and failing to pull free from me. I scrutinized his face, searching for any deceit. I found none though and released him.

"You could have just asked for my number you dork. But whatever, that's cool I guess." I grumbled, turning to finish my task. When I finished, I spoke up again. "I get off in 30 if you wanna walk home with me or whatever." I suggested, catching the alien by surprise. He fumbled for a response but ended up just nodding affirmatively.

The silence as Zim and I walked was extremely awkward. It seemed as if he wanted to say _something_ but couldn't bring himself to. After a few minutes, I decided I should initiate the conversion.

"So, what do you do for fun?" I asked, unsure of what else I could really ask.

"Fun?" Zim repeated, obviously confused by the word. I nodded.

"Yeah, like something you enjoy doing." I replied, still wondering if he would understand what I meant.

"Oh, well, the things I enjoy doing would most likely be very disturbing to you." He admitted with a bit of a smirk. I returned it and scoffed.

"Try me, space boy." I challenged, crossing my arms. The invader chuckled before replying.

"For the time being, I've picked up the hobby of finding Earth creatures and keeping them in tubes as specimens for my Tallest and Irken scientists to study." He told me, clearly hoping to horrify me, but I just laughed instead.

"I guess we have more in common than I thought. I've got a pretty decent collection of wet specimens myself. I can show you if you wanna see." I offered, regretting it almost instantly. Did I really want him in my room? It was clean, and nothing embarrassing was laying around, but did I honestly trust him enough to invite him into my home? I guess we were about to find out. I kicked my leg over the electric fence bordering our lawn. A bit extreme, but I guess my dad just really didn't want children or dogs wandering onto our grass. Zim followed as I approached the tree in front of my window. I turned back to the invader.

"Stay out here, I'll open the window so you can come inside without Dib seeing you." I told him as I went for the front door. The house was dark and silent. I sighed in relief, Dib was at work at the book store, but I still had to sneak Zim in through my window. I couldn't risk Zim being filmed by the cameras in the house. I had nearly beaten my brother to a pulp when I found a camera installed in my room and demanded he take it down. He insisted it was a security measure, but didn't fight me about it after that incedent. I opened my window and hung halfway out of it to offer my hand to Zim.

"Come on, dork." I said with a smirk. The invader smirked back and took my hand in his, just as thin, metal legs sprang from his Pak. He used them to lift himself and I looked at them with curiosity.

"Those are nifty." I noted, as the alien stepped on the window sill. I paused for a moment, just watching him as he stopped to watch me in return. We stared for a long while, not really breathing or speaking. It stayed this way until Zim slowly started to lean in and hit his head on the glass pane. I snorted and he yelped in surprise when I let go of his hand.

"So much for that high intelligence you're bragging about all the time." I quipped, turning away from the Irk.

"Shut up." He snapped back, climbing through the window. I just smiled and shook my head. Zim joined me at my side as I looked up admiringly at my rows of specimens. He stepped closer to examine them, reaching out to grab a jar. I didn't stop him, hoping he wasn't as careless as I remembered him being. After picking up a few more, he spoke.

"Zim likes your specimens. They're very well preserved. What do you use?" He inquired, glancing back at me.

"Just isopropyl alcohol, it keeps them from decaying." I answered, proud that I was able to impress the egotistical creature.

"Fascinating. I've found it difficult to perfect the art of keeping wet specimens. What I use is meant to preserve living organics in suspended animation, so naturally, it doesn't work too well with dead or decaying subjects." He confessed, turning back to me. I raised my eyebrows a bit.

"Wow, something Irken technology _can't_ do." I joked, earning a scowl from the invader.

"Irkens tend to keep live specimens captive, it makes for better studies of their bodies. Keeping them 'fresh' in a sense seems better than just scraping dead things off the side of the road." Zim shot back in his defense. I simply shrugged back.

"It's considered inhumane to keep things captive for scientific research. Well, depending on who you ask. My father, for example, has no issue using animals and humans for testing his inventions." I told him, tasting the bitterness of my words as I spoke. I walked over to my bed and fell forward onto it, rolling over to look at the Irk.

"I haven't seen the professor on any Earth news in sometime now. What has he been up to?" The alien questioned, feigning disinterest. I narrowed my eyes at him a bit, knowing exactly why he was so curious about my father's activity. It was no secret that Professor Membrane was one, if not _the_ smartest scientist on the planet. Because of this, every move he made was reported as news. But lately, he had been keeping out of the media spotlight.

"I don't know for sure, it's been a few months since I've seen or talked to him. Probably still working on that cure for cancer or something similar." I grumbled, getting back up from the bed and taking the specimen from Zim.

"And...would this 'cure for cancer' get in the way of the armada?" The invader baited, raising a brow at me. I huffed in amusement and shook my head.

"No, Zim. It might save some human lives, but even at that, it won't aid them in defense against an alien invasion." I assured him, placing the jar back on the shelf.

"Ah, good good." He murmured offhand, fiddling with a leaf on one of my succulents. I rolled my eyes and sat back down on my bed as the Irk continued to explore my room. He walked over to the trash bag filled with everything I had collected over my time with Oliver. He dug through it, examining the dried up roses and notes. He pulled out one letter in particular, a red one, the one Oliver and I had exchanged during class. I remembered what it said, having almost memorized it without realizing it. It was a long letter about what he loved about me, how he felt around me, how much he cared about me. It was true at the time I suppose, but of course, things change. People change, feelings change. Something on Zim's face changed as he read the letter, he looked visibly tense. I tensed up as well and looked away for him.

"I hate having all that shit left over in my room..." I hissed, my hands curling into fists around my comforter. I released it instantly, remembering everything that had taken place on this bed.

"Would you like to burn it, then?" Zim piped up, picking up the garbage bag.

**Zim's POV**

Gaz's eyes lit up and she smiled in such a way that my throat went dry from...something, something I couldn't place.

"Can we?" She asked, and I don't know how she expected me to say anything but 'yes, of course'. I smiled back and chuckled.

"Why not? We can take it out to the woods on the edge of the city." I replied happily. She nodded in agreement and got up, staring at her bed for a moment.

"We can burn this stuff too." She said, gathering the blanket and balling it up. I raised a brow in confusion at this action.

"Why would you burn your bedding? That's seems counterintuitive." I inquired. She paused for a moment before going back to remove the sheets and pillowcases as well.

"He touched them. Besides, we can just swing by the store on our way back and buy a new set." She answered, obviously withholding something important. I didn't have any idea what it might be, but I didn't bother pressing the matter. The Earth-girl shoved the tainted bedding into a trash bag and chucked it out the window, followed by the one with all the papers and such in it. Then she opened her closet and pulled out a familiar red canister. My eyes widened in disbelief and she looked back at me with a smirk.

"What are you staring at, string bean?" She teased, narrowing her eyes at me.

"You keep liquid accelerant in your bedroom?" I asked, laughing a bit at the ridiculous situation. She just shrugged and went back over to the window.

"Its a human thing." She lied, jumping from the sill. I was almost positive this was exclusively a "Gaz thing". I followed after her, closing the window halfway before falling and landing easily on my feet.

"Somehow, Zim finds that hard to believe." I muttered, slinging one of the bags over my shoulder while the human carried the other as well as the accelerant.

It didn't take long to get to the forest. What took longer, was finding a clearing that wasn't likely to catch fire. Once we found a reasonably safe area, Gaz dumped the contents of the bags out onto the ground and emptied the canister. With everything soaked, she stood back, pushing me behind her a bit with her arm. The girl pulled out a small box from her pocket and opened it, producing two sticks from inside. She scraped them along the side of the box and the sticks came alive with a tiny, flickering flame. With only a second of hesitation, she threw the sticks onto the pile.

It was engulfed by fire almost instantly, the pile giving off an intense heat that almost hurt. I stepped back a little further, pulling Gaz with me just to be safe. She didn't protest, she didn't say a word, she just kept her gaze fixed on the burning pile of junk she labeled as 'memories'. I could see the beginning of tears forming in her eyes as they glassed over, but still, she was silent. My insides turned, that feeling of unease rising in my throat. I swallowed dryly, trying to think of a way to remedy this feeling she caused inside me.

Unsure of myself, I reached out cautiously, intertwining my hand with hers. It felt strange because of her extra digits, but I pushed it aside in my mind. She looked back me, in surprise I assumed, though her face was completely emotionless. She turned her face back to the fire just as a tear began to roll down her cheek. She hastily brushed it away with her sleeve and took a deep, shuttering breath. The quietness began to eat at me as the seconds turned into minutes and I was desperate to fill the void. I cleared my throat and stepped a bit closer, still holding Gaz's hand.

"That's a, uh, pretty impressive fire, huh?" I stammered out, cursing myself for not having thought of something better to say. The human let out a small chortle and nodded, making my chest thrum for unknown reasons.

"They don't call me 'Gasoline' for nothing." She commented, her fingers flexing around mine for a brief second. "Dib used to call me that when we were kids...It really caught on at school and all the other kids started using it too. Of course they didn't have the balls to say it in front of me, but I'd hear them in the halls. My dad even said once that's where Gazalene came from, since it sounded so similar." She told me with a smile. I smiled in return and turned my focus back to the fire. I could feel my pulse racing, but only in the hand that was touching the Earth-girl. I could feel myself growing extremely warm, and it wasn't from the fire blazing in front of me. She wasn't letting go though, and she didn't seem bothered or angered by my attempt at comforting her. _'It must be working,'_ I thought hopefully, smiling triumphantly to myself. I squeezed her the way she had done to me earlier, regaining her attention.

"Are you ready to go?" I asked patiently. Gaz looked back to the fire for a moment before meeting my eyes again and nodding. Still holding her hand, I lead us out of the woods and back towards the inner city. From there, she took control and steered us to a store to replace the bedding we had just burned. She browsed for a few minutes, already knowing what she was looking for. She ended up picking out and purple bed set with black accents and designs. We went straight back to her place after that, entering through the window once again.

I didn't stick around for more than a few more minutes, telling the human goodnight and leaving abruptly. I walked back to the base, taking my time as I did so. Something was shifting inside me, it had been since the Gaz-beast and I had made our agreement to help each other. It was hard to place how exactly I had gotten here, how I had become, for lack of a better word, enamored with the Earth-girl. I was so sure I had humans figured out, and frankly, it was embarrassing to have her prove me wrong. The way she acted, the way she thought, the way she felt things I didn't know she was capable of feeling. It was frustrating to not know what she might say or how she would react to certain things.

But on the other hand, it was...exciting? Was that the right word to use? She was a mystery to me, more so than anyone else on this doomed rock, and she was just so intriguing. The most frustrated of all, though, was how the damned worm was beginning to make me feel. And though it enraged me that she could affect me whatsoever, I had no idea how to stop it.

* * *

**AN: HOLY FUCK DUDES AND DUDETTES, IT'S BEEN A MINUTE, HASN'T IT!? Well, to quell any questions or speculations, no, I am not dead. Nor have I abandoned this story. I'm just a human garbage can is all! Anyway, I hope you all enjoy this chapter and it hopefully, maybe, makes up for the long absence of content. Praying the next chapter comes out smoother. Also, anyone know how daddy Vasquez came up with Gaz's name? That's right, he did indeed name her after gasoline for her explosive temper.**


	17. Amputation

_I can barely speak, black and white bed sheets,_  
_I feel the air retreat; I know you're here with me._  
_How do I fake it with another man?_  
_How do I love him on the weekend?_  
_How do I listen to another man?_  
_How do I get off on the weekend?_  
_You're in my heart, in my heart, in my head_

_~Heart Heart Head-Meg Meyers~_

* * *

I sat on my bed with Zim, watching a movie on Netfilms. I couldn't tell you what it was called or what it was about, but I was definitely watching it. Yep, definitely...watching...it. But I wasn't watching it, not really. No, I was more focused on the insane rythme my heart was beating out for no obvious reason. Why the hell was I so nervous? It was just Zim, we were just watching a movie, he's just my partner. So why was I blushing when his leg accidentally touched mine as he shifted to sit against the wall with me? Why were my hands sweating as he scooted closer, his shoulder touching mine. My breath hitched in anticipation as his hand slowly moved to hold mine. I let him, because I wouldn't have been able to move, even if I wanted to. I was frozen to the spot, an observer as I watched everything unfold. I was not in control here, but for once, that fact didn't fill me with anger. Instead, I was curious to see what would happen, where this, whatever *this* was, would lead. After a moment of holding my hand, he turns his face to me, his expression unreadable as I stare at him. He leans into me, his eyes lidded as he gets nearer to my face. Without any thought, I leaned in too, feeling his breathe ghost across my mouth-

A loud shrieking cut the kiss off and I shot up from my bed, my forehead and back sticky with sweat. I was breathing hard, a bit shocked, partly from my dream, and partly from the rude awakening from my alarm clock. I took a deep breath and sighed, burying my face in a pillow I'd grabbed in my panic. I shook my head, unable to believe that I had really just dreamed that. He almost-! I almost-! We...oh God, please let this be a one-time thing.

* * *

**Monday**

* * *

 

My stomach knotted up with nerves as I walked down the sidewalk, following the now familiar route from the school to Zim's base. I agreed to allow him to examine me today, and I was honestly a bit terrified of what might happen. I mean, if he can't take my blood with the proper care required, how do I expect him to 'examine' me in a safe manner? God, this was a mistake. Especially after that damned dream...nightmare, whatever the **hell**  that was. I still didn't know what it meant, if anything at all. I prayed (jk) that it was just my brains weird way of projecting my jumbled up emotions on the alien. My thoughts were interrupted by my phone buzzing in my pocket. I pulled it out and squinted at the screen. I didn't recognize the number, and answered hesitantly.

"Hello?" I asked cautiously, hoping it wasn't a telemarketer or some other pest.

"Gaz! I've been calling and texting you like crazy since Tuesday! Are you okay?" The voice made me pause in my walk. My hand tighten dangerously around my phone and I swallowed the lump in my throat before answering back.

"What do you _want_ , Oliver?" I demanded through my teeth as I tried not to explode with anger, or worse, burst into tears. A sigh came from the other end and a small bit of silence followed.

"I've been trying to get a hold of you since everything happened." He replied, letting nerves show plainly in his voice. I shook my head.

"Yeah, I get that. But why? What could you possibly want from me now?" I snapped, deciding to continue down the sidewalk.

"I just want you to hear me out!" He said quickly, probably knowing I was close to just hanging up at this point. I clenched my fists and stopped once more.

"There's nothing to hear out, you idiot! You cheated on me, lied to me, treated me like shit, and I don't owe you a damn thing, let alone do I need to hear you out." I growled into the receiver.

"Babe, please, just listen to me. It wasn't supposed to end up like this!" He pleaded, becoming desperate now.

"Well it did! And I'm not your babe! You have no idea how lucky you are that Zim stopped me, or you wouldn't have air in your lungs to spew this bullshit to me right now." I hissed, beginning to tremble with anger, and just about every other emotion one could be burdened with.

"I'm sorry, I really am! Just please, give me another chance! I love you." He murmured into the phone, causing tears to well in my eyes. I gritted my teeth, choking back a sob. I didn't say anything for a while, trying to catch my breath.

"No, you don't. You don't hurt the people you love. So don't try to feed me that crap!" I snarled, and it seemed to shut him up. The silence lasted for a moment before I heard him sigh and speak again.

"Gaz, I'm begging you. Please, just talk to me. If you just do that for me I won't bother you anymore." He pleaded, I could hear his voice cracking, on the verge of tears. My heart clenched and I shut my eyes tightly.

"Fine. Meet me at my house in five." I grumbled, hanging up before he could protest. I then opened up the pendent of my necklace, and requested a video call with the most annoying Lima bean on Earth. The screen popped up and I saw Zim, and in a tiny corner of the screen, I could see myself in a little box. I looked horrible, eyes red and puffy from crying.

"Zim, I'm gonna be late coming over." I told him. His brow furrowed in obvious misunderstanding.

"What, why?" He demanded. I just sighed and looked away.

"I'm meeting up with Oliver." I replied curtly, not looking back up at the invader.

"Ah, you've finally decided to end his pathetic existance after all." Zim amended, a satisfied smile on his face. I smirked and shook my head a bit.

"No, we're just going to talk, I think. I dunno, I might still kick his ass." I joked, though I did mean it when I said I might still kick his ass. Zim's face contorted into an expression of disgust and he recoiled dramatically.

"Talk? What is there to talk about?" He exclaimed. I snorted and nodded in agreement.

"That's what I'm saying. Anyway, I'll see you in a bit. We're just meeting at my house, so I won't be far." I told him. His eyes lit up a bit in excitement and he grinned.

"Zim wishes to attend the stink-pig's funeral." He stated, moving around, probably looking for his disguise to put on.

"You're not coming, Zim. Stay at the base." I stated firmly, shutting the pendent. Man, I was on a roll with hanging up on people today.

When I got to my house, Oliver was there, sitting on the stoop of my front door. I instantly felt my frown deepen at the sight of him and I stopped a few feet away from him. I didn't really know what to say, and from the looks of it, neither did he. But after a minute of tense silence, Oliver finally got a few words out.

"Thank you for meeting me-" I held up and hand, cutting him off.

"What do you have to say to me that you haven't already? Because if its another weak apology, you might as well ram your face into my fist now and save me the effort." I insisted cruelly, hold my fist out. Oliver looked a bit baffled and shook his head.

"N-no I just...I deserve a chance to explain myself, don't you think?" He asked, his eyes imploring. I looked away quickly, whether I was unwilling to hold his gaze, or unable to, I wasn't sure.

"You deserve to have your ass handed to you. You're lucky I'm letting you stand anywhere near me. So hurry up, before I change my mind about letting you leave unharmed." I spat, my nails digging into the skin of my arm. Oliver straightened up and held up his hands defensively.

"Okay, well first of all, what you saw isn't what you think it was." He began, and I scoffed.

"Oh, it wasn't? Seemed pretty clear to me that she was about to kiss you." I replied, feeling my chest tighten at the memory.

"Exactly! **She**  was going to kiss **me**. Not the other way around. Did you see me leaning in to meet her?" He demanded, raising a brow at me. I glared at the teen, feeling my anger start to boil a bit higher.

"You didn't stop her or pull away, either." I seethed, and Oliver stood suddenly, his hands balling into fists.

"I was in shock! I know you said you didn't want me around her because she has deeper feelings for me, but I didn't believe you until she pulled that stunt." He confessed, quickly losing any anger he might have had. I just shook my head at him.

"Was she also pulling a stunt when I saw you two holding hands the other day?" I asked, knowing I had him caught in his lie. He looked away from me now, his hand fidgeting at his side.

"No, actually, that was my idea. But I was only trying to comfort her. Her father was hospitalized again, she doesn't know if he'll be leaving. You know he's been like this since we've known her." He replied, searching my eyes for a shred of sympathy. There was none. He knew that, and so did I. I sighed and pinched the bridge of my nose before answering.

"I think you're missing the point, Oliver. I asked you to stay away from her because she made me uncomfortable and I didn't trust her around you. It looks like I was right to judge her. And yet, you went out of your way to disregard my feelings and saw her behind my back!" I snapped, nearly yelling at him.

"What about _my_  feelings, Gaz?! You didn't care how switching schools affected me or made me feel. I don't have many friends, you know that, and you made me abandon one of my closest friends. You were all I had after that. And when you left, I was alone. So I tried to make amends with my old friends that I'd lost along with Zita, and of course they accepted me back into their group. But Zita was still in the group. I couldn't just avoid her." He defended, and I knew he was right, but so was I. He had lied to me. He went behind my back. And that was only the cherry on top of our volcano of a relationship. Tears welled in my eyes, but I couldn't be bothered to pay attention to them now.

"So, in order to get close to her and everyone else, you decided to neglect and lie to me? Why didn't you just break up with me if I made you so miserable?!" I shouted, my hands balling up at my sides.

"Because I loved you!" He shouted back, just as furious in his tone. I went silent, unable to think of a reply. He sighed shakily, and I finally noticed the tears forming in his eyes too. "I still love you. I just...thought we could work it out." He murmured, taking my hand in his gently. I sniffed and wiped my eyes, removing my hand from his.

"You don't just "work out" lying and manipulation!" I pointed out, catching Oliver's eyes. They were red and puffy like my, wet with tears. I couldn't look at him anymore, not like this. "We truly bring out the worst in each other. What we had, it wasn't healthy. Hell, past a certain point it wasn't even love anymore. We were just sticking together because we'd put up with so much of each other's shit for so long." I reasoned, staring at the cracks in my walkway instead of the person who's heart I was breaking. I didn't want to hurt him, no matter how many times I told myself that I did. But we both knew what was for the best. The silence wouldn't have been so bad if I didn't also have to listen Oliver choking back sobs and sniffling. I closed my eyes, and waited for it to pass, and just standing there made it feel like an eternity. Finally, he got his shit together and he spoke.

"Don't you at least want to be civil? Can't we be friends?" He begged, and I could feel those eyes of his boring into me, asking me to look back at him. I shook my head furiously.

"No, Oliver, we've tried that! Everytime we split and say we'll be friends, we always end up as more than friends. We aren't good for each other, so no, we can't be friends. We can't be anything more than strangers." I told him, looking back up at him, forcing an emotionless mask. He hung his head at my words and I turned to walk away from him.

"I'll miss you." He told me in a hoarse whisper. I stopped, and took a moment to catch my breath.

"You'll be okay." I assured him, not turning to face him.

"Gaz," He called, grabbing my wrist. I glowered back at him and he wavered a bit. He took a deep breath before continuing. "Promise me, promise you won't hurt yourself anymore." He pleaded with me. Enraged by the implication, I yanked my arm away and walked away.

"Whatever happens to me is my choice. It has nothing to do with you. Don't flatter yourself by thinking otherwise." I reminded him coldly. I rounded the end of my street, met by a giddy but clearly troubled Zim. I clenched my teeth, my eyes burning with hatred.

"I thought I told you to stay at the base!" I bellowed, making the invader flinch in surprise at the volume and rage of my voice. He said nothing though and followed silently behind me as I marched to his lopsided home. Just as we reach the door, the Irk finally spoke.

"Gaz-partner, what did the pig-smelly mean when he asked you not to hurt yourself?" He asked meekly, obviously knowing how unstable I was at the moment. I sat down on his couch quietly, bringing my knees up to my chest as I took a shaking breath in. Zim didn't sit next to me like I half expected him to, and he didn't force his strange comforting methods on me like he had been. Instead, he sat Indian style on the floor in front of me, staring at me with a strange mix of worry and fascination. I returned his gaze, my eyes empty as I felt all the emotion drain from me in an instant.

"Those scars you saw a few days ago, they were from self-inflicted wounds." I said cooly. His face went blank, and he didn't say anything at first.

"Self-inflicted," He repeated, trying to wrap is head around the term. He pondered this information before looking back up at me. "What for?" He asked, his voice as eerily calm as mine. I wasn't sure how to answer, because there were so many different reason why I had treated myself so poorly. Where did I even start? Dare I start? I closed my eyes and rested my cheek against my knees.

"You feel hate, don't you, Zim?" I retorted, knowing he must know something as primal as hate.

"Yes, Zim knows hate. Though, he does not waste it as frequently as he did when he first arrived on Earth." He answered, clearly not happy that I had dodged his question. I smirked a bit.

"And have you ever hated something or someone so much that you were willing to do almost anything to destroy it? Even if that meant you had to face consequences for it?" I continued, turning my head to look at him while I kept it on my knees. His brow furrowed in irritation at this but he didn't pause more than that.

"Zim has destroyed many things in his life time. And he has been punished for destroying a great deal of those things." He explained, looking a bit dejected recalling those memories.

"I can't imagine someone as self-absorbed as you could ever muster any self hatred." I assumed, only perplexing the invader more with my statement.

"Self hatred? How does one hate themselves?" He asked, shaking his head. I smiled a bit and unfurled myself from my upright fetal position.

"You have to have a conscience, firstly. You have to be able to feel things like guilt and regret. And while I wish I could void those feelings, I suppose they come naturally." Zim was fighting back a smile when I looked back up at him. Soon he was bent over, cackling like a madman. It was easier to be around him when I thought he was just insane instead of a complete idiot. I wiped my eyes and glared at the invader. "What's so funny, cockroach?" I hissed defensively. Zim's laughter slowly died down and he sighed contently.

"Zim finds it hysterical that you're still crying over this. Human emotions are truly a burden I do not envy." He told me, his tone as condescending as ever.

"How would *you* feel if someone you trusted did this to you? How would you feel if the Tallest ever betrayed you?" His antennae fell instantly and he narrowed his eyes at me.

"Don't say things like that about the Tallest, Gaz-partner. They would never betray Zim's loyalty." He said with a frown.

"But what if they did? Wouldn't you be unhappy, wouldn't you even be the tiniest bit sad that you'd given them everything you could, but they lied to you and betrayed your trust?" I asked, searching for some sort of realization or recognition from the alien. He was silent, and looked uncomfortable as he considered the scenario.

"I...suppose it wouldn't be welcomed news... but why should you care about a worm like him, Zim thought you were stronger than that." I gave a humorless chuckle, glaring darkly at the Irken.

"This isn't about strength, Zim. Even the strongest people are still human, and from that we are flawed. I am flawed, in most aspects that a person can be, but I'm stronger than I used to be." Once again, the invader was left without words and he simply sat there, thinking to himself. "If you want to know why I did it, I'll tell you." I said finally. Zim's interest is caught again and he nodded, glancing at my arm curiously.

"It's not as thrilling of a tale as you may think." I warned. "Every person has the primitive drive to survive, at any and all costs. People will even kill each other if they think it'll help them live longer. The day I was born, my mother died to save my life-she chose my life over her own." Zim looked surprised to find this out. "And while I'm sure she still felt that urge to live and save herself, the urge to let me die and go back home to my father and Dib, she sacrificed herself. I took her life that day, I stole her chance to be happy. I always knew it, too. From the moment I was told what happened, I took responsibility for her death." The alien didn't seem to understand this, looking at me in confusion. "My father can't even  _look_  at me anymore because I'm the spitting image of her. He _abandoned_  Dib and me because he couldn't stand to be reminded of her, even if that meant leaving Dib and me to raise each other in his place." Zim looked increasingly more conflicted. He backed away from her a bit. "I destroyed a family, my _own_  family, and it wasn't even my choice! But I was dealt the blame, and it tore me to shreds. Day after day, I broke a little more. I succumbed to the guilt, little by little. I grew to hate myself, I learned to accept that I was an avoidable tragedy." He cringes at the last part, as if I'd hit a nerve. He seemed to shrink a bit, becoming more and more uncomfortable. Maybe he was beginning to understand and sympathize. "With the anger and frustration I felt for myself, it was like I was burning on the inside. I was trapped in my own personal hell, for something I didn't even do, but I still thought I deserved it. I deserved a lot worse for this, so I did worse." I trailed off, my voice becoming strained. Horror and realization played across the Irk's face and he suddenly looked ill.

"That's...enough, Gaz-partner." He muttered, looking a bit unsteady. Realizing this, I thought to use it against him, to test his limits.

"I wanted to self destruct, I wanted to tear myself apart. So I did!" I snarled, trying to get a rise out of him. He glared at me, catching onto the fact that I was trying to push him.

"Shut up." He growled, his hands balling into fists. I held back a smile, having gotten what I wanted from him.

"I just wanted to feel it on my skin, on the surface, instead of inside the deepest parts of me-"

"Stop talking!" He yelled, anger shinning in his eyes. I smiled now, knowing I was going past the point of no return, but I didn't care.

"The blood and steel blocked out all those horrible emotions-"

"SHUT UP!" He screamed as he shot up from the floor and cupped a hand over my mouth. I stared at him in surprise for a long moment, and we didn't break eye contact until I closed my eyes. I let the tears welling in my eyes fall but refused to make any other acknowledgement to my now-placid anger.

"It isn't funny anymore..." He said softly, a confused and saddened expression on his face. _'It never was...'_ I thought bitterly. He pulled his hand away from my mouth, brushing the tears off my cheeks with a scowl.

"Zim does not like this, or these sad little drops that come from your eyes." He murmured, pulling me into a hug, much like when I had been crying a few days ago. But to my own surprise, and I'm sure his, I returned the embrace, wrapping my arms around him tightly. "I don't ever want to hear about you mutilating yourself like that again. Is that clear?" The words were hushed, but also stern, and I felt my chest tighten suddenly. I pulled away just a bit to look up at his face but said nothing.

"If it makes you feel better, I destroyed half of my home planet. By accident." He muttered, pulling me back into his embrace. I blinked in surprise at this confession and I was relieved he couldn't see my bewildered expression.

"How does one *accidentally* destroy half of a planet?" I asked with a laugh.

"I thought we were already on the enemy planet, but we were still on Irk." He replied, obviously still embarrassed about the incident.

"If you could teach me how to do that, I'd be very thankful." Zim chuckled and pulled.

"I'm afriad it's a natural talent, not something that can be taught." I snickered and there's a beat of silence before the invader pipes back up. "Zim is...sorry for teasing you." He offered, unable to make eye contact with me. I frowned and shook my head.

"You shouldn't say things you don't mean." I scolded half-heartedly.

"Why not, doesn't it make you feel better?" He asked, looking confused again. I shook my head again.

"Not when I know you're telling a lie." I replied.

"Zim may not be sorry, but he does not wish for his Gaz-partner to be so full of emotion-goo." My eyebrows knitted together in confusion and then raised in amusement.

"That's not even a thing, you weirdo." I laughed, smirking at the Irken. Zim blinked, tilting his head to the side.

"It's not?"

"No." I answered curtly.

"Zim could have sworn you humans had emotion-goo." He told me earnestly. I chuckled and patted his shoulder.

"I can guarantee, we don't. I can't imagine having that much goo in my fucking system. I mean, you've got 'mission goo', and now there's emotion goo." I teased, earning a smile from the invader. Not a smirk, but an actual smile, and it was a strange thing to see. But it was good too, a good kind of strange. I was...sort of getting used to Zim's new physical contact bullshit, and it was nice that he wasn't doing it because he needs to, but because he feels I need it. I think I do need it, sometimes.

Zim didn't end up doing the examination that day, we just sort of sat there and talked for a few hours. However, he did make me swear to keep to my word and let him examine me another time, to which I agreed with an eye roll. I wasn't sure what he planned to do during this examination, but thinking about it before bed really wasn't a good idea.

* * *

A/N: Hey guys, sorry for the abrupt ending, I wasn't really sure how to end this chapter and didn't want to spend anymore time making you guys wait on this. So here you go! I hope you all enjoy.


	18. The Horror of Discovery

_Down to you_  
 _You're pushing and pulling me down to you_  
 _But I don't know what I_  
 _Now when I caught myself_  
 _I had to stop myself_  
 _From saying something_  
 _That I should've never thought_  
  
_~I Caught Myself---Paramore~_

* * *

**Gaz's POV**  
It had been a week since everything was finally resolved. At the very least, the weight on my shoulders was a bit lighter now that I didn't have to worry about Oliver ever trying to come back into my life. After years of back and forth, I was finally free. It was much more liberating than I thought it would be. Zim had been cautious around me, trying to be sensitive to the situation and my feelings, which was nice. He was considerably less annoying when he was walking on eggshells. It seemed he had also dropped the whole "physical examination" thing, that is, until it had officially been 7 days. I guess there's a grace period on that sort of thing.  
  
"I've wanted to give you sufficient time to recover from what all happened last week. And now that it seems you're doing better, I would like to try again for an examination, if you'll permit it." He said, looking a bit nervous, which made me smirk. I sighed and allowed his question to hang in the air for a while as we walked.  
  
"Yeah, alright. Once again, you're not allowed to cut me open or harvest my organs." I reminded him, glancing at him from the side. The invader rolled his eyes and waved his hand.  
  
"Yeah yeah, you can keep your filthy organs. I had enough of those in middle school." He mumbled, opening the door to his base. I chuckled and followed him in. He instantly started removing his disguise and headed for the elevator. I squeezed myself inside with him and was suddenly reminded of the dreams I'd been plagued with all week. I felt my face flush and was thankful Zim wasn't interested in looking at me as we rode down to the lab. The doors opened to the level we had been on when he took my blood and he wordlessly pointed at a table for me to get on. A bit miffed, I followed instruction and sat on the uncomfortably cold table, waiting for further commands from the alien. He was busy fiddling with something in his hands that I couldn't see.  
  
"You can undress now, Gaz-partner." He informed me, his back still turned to me. I froze to the spot, my brain short-circuiting. It hadn't occurred to me that this examination would likely be similar in execution to a physical. Hesitantly, I slid off the table and started to undress, shedding my top first. I slipped out of my blazer and took off my tie, before starting to unbutton my blouse. Just as the garment fell to the floor, Zim spun on his heel, an electronic pad in his grasp. He glanced up at me, briefly making eye contact before I looked away and unzipped my skirt. I could feel his eyes still on me as it fell around my ankles and I tried to just ignore it as I took my socks and shoes off as well. I wasn't totally sure how far I was supposed to undress, so I just stayed in my bra and underwear, hoping I wouldn't have to undress any further. When I was finished, I hopped back up on the table. The Irk was back to typing on the pad in his hands but came closer, standing beside me. I could now see that he was typing in characters that I couldn't read.   
  
"Is that your language?" I asked, leaning over his shoulder at bit. Zim pulled back in surprise, looking back at me as if he'd forgotten I was there.  
  
"Er...yes. I keep all of my notes about Earth and it's inhabitants in Irken so I don't have to translate it before sending them to my Tallest." He replied, continuing to type. I looked at him in confusion.  
  
"You're still reporting to your Tallest?" I thought he had been regarded as inactive by Dib.   
  
"It's been years since my last update to them. But now, with the information I'm getting from you, I can supply them with useful notes for the invasion." He explained, clearly happy about the exchange of information. I frowned at this, my stomach twisting with the slightest ounce of guilt.  
  
"I see, so the downfall of my planet really is all my fault." I muttered numbly. Zim looked at me for a moment before shrugging casually.  
  
"Eh, it was bound to happen, one way or another. I've seen enough species on the verge of extinction to know that you humans aren't too far off. Consider it a courtesy to your kind that their end will most likely be put off until they prove themselves useless to the empire." He assured me. I felt a bit better knowing I wasn't killing off a thriving planet, but rather doing what might even be a favor.  
  
"So enslavement is the initial plan?" I inquired, raising a brow at the invader. Zim nodded in confirmation before turning to face me.  
  
"It's the best option, if you ask me. But ultimately it is up to the conversion team to assess the planet and it's inhabitants worth. From that point the Tallest will decide what fate is most fit." He confessed, his tone matter of fact. It felt...weird to talk about the end of the world in such an "old news" fashion.  
  
"Fingers crossed then, I guess." I sighed half-heartedly, tucking a stray hair behind my ear.  
  
"I'd like to begin the examination now, if that's alright." Zim insisted, sounding like he was trying not to be eager. He almost made it feel like this was normal, almost. My hands gripped the edge of the table nervously and I swallowed the dry lump in my throat.  
  
"Right, let's get this shit show over with." I said curtly, closing my eyes for a brief moment. I wasn't sure how to brace myself for this kind of...invasion of personal space and privacy. The alien cleared his throat and stood tall, presumably to look professional.  
  
"I'll just be asking some general questions about your health to start. When was your last menstrual period?" I burst out laughing, feeling embarrassed not only for myself, but for Zim as well.  
  
"Why are you laughing? Did Zim not properly pronounce his words?" He asked, looking embarrassed and a bit angry at my outburst. I shook my head and patted his arm.  
  
"No, God, I just wasn't prepared to hear that come out of your mouth." I chuckled, and the Irk rolled his eyes at me, clearly frustrated.  
  
**Zim's POV**  
  
I could feel my face warm up from embarrassment and I looked away curtly. I was wrong when I suspected she would look like the females in our textbooks. Sure, she had the same organs, and I could tell she had breasts hiding in....whatever strange armor she was wearing to cover them. But her appearance didn't evoke the same feeling of disgust as the illustrations had. To my dismay, it was the complete opposite of disgust; it was fascination. Her body was...foreign in its structure compared to that of Irken females. But it was a pleasant sight, almost...alluring. The way her body curved and dipped in certain places was actually rather attractive. I quickly shook those thoughts, making sure not to let my eyes linger on her for too long.  
  
"Well, now that you've gotten that out of your system, please answer the question." I grumbled, my brow twitching a bit from irritation. She pursed her lips as she thought. After a moment, she exhaled loudly with a shrug.  
  
"Uh, I'd say about 3 years ago? Not really sure about the month or day." She replied vaguely, catching me by surprise. How could she not know? Earth females of her age were supposed to know that sort of thing, weren't they? Had Computer just thrown that question in there to make me look like a fool?  
  
"That...doesn't sound right. Don't you females have a yearly cycle?" I asked, hoping she would clarify.   
  
"Monthly. And yes, most women have a period once every month. But there's this wonderful thing out there called birth control. I haven't had a period since I started getting my shot regularly." She explained with a teasing smirk. She always did that when she knew I was flustered by a mistake.  
  
"So what is in this shot that keeps you from having a cycle?" I inquired, ignoring the embarrassment from earlier.   
  
"Hormones. I'm kinda fuzzy on the details, but the hormones cancel out the ones that cause an egg to drop during a menstrual period. Honestly, I'm probably sterile at this point." She said with a chuckle. I raised a brow at the Earth girl.  
  
"Is that affect from the shot?" I prodded, and she nodded.   
  
"Yeah, when you take it at a young age or for a prolonged time, it can put you at risk of being unable to conceive. Which, in my case isn't an issue. If I'm truly ever desperate for offspring, I'll adopt." Gaz informed me. I typed in the information into my pad, noting sterilization as a possible way to further control the humans.  
  
"I see, then there's no chance that you could be pregnant?" She laughed.  
  
"Not really, I haven't had sex in a while. I'd know by now if I were pregnant." She guaranteed confidently. I nodded.  
  
"Excellent. Do you smoke?"  
  
"Only on occasion. I don't smoke cigarettes either." My brow furrowed, the didn't make sense to me, but whatever. It wasn't that important.   
  
"I...see. Do you drink or take any illegal drugs...whatever that means." The concept of what was "legal" and "illegal" on Earth was completely lost on me.  
  
"No to both. Just isn't my scene."  
  
"Good. When was the last time you had sexual intercourse?" I could not and did not imagine what human reproduction might look like, and for the Gaz-partner to be involved in it was an unsettling thought.  
  
"Uh, geez, like I said, it's been a while. Probably about a month ago." She told me, her cheeks turning pink. I knew this was what humans called "blush", what it meant was a whole other story.   
  
"Duly noted. How many sexual partners have you had in the last 5 years? Again, I'm not really sure what this means." Is this the amount of mates she has kept? If so, why exactly do I need to know?  
  
"3. Are we almost done with the questions? This is starting to get weird." She said, starting to get impatient. I nodded and looked back to my notepad.  
  
"Hm, there's only two more. Are you currently taking any medications?" I asked, not sure what I was really asking. I didn't know what medication was, but it was a question that Computer warned me might be too personal for the Gaz-partner to answer.   
  
"I'm taking an antidepressant and that birth control shot." She told me quickly, crossing her arms.  
  
"And how long have you been on these?"  
  
"I've been on the antidepressant since I was 12. I've been taking the birth control for a little over 3 years." I took down her answers, and promised to research later all of the things I had been confused by.  
  
"Thank you for your cooperation, Gaz-partner. Computer warned me that some of these questions might make you uncomfortable or upset." The girl just shrugged.  
  
"It's fine. They're pretty standard questions. What's next?" She questioned, obviously relieved to be through with the questions.  
  
"Next, would be the physical examination. Again, I'll be asking questions while examining you, since I'm unfamiliar." I informed her.  
  
"That's fair. Do you need me to stand or...?"  
  
"You can stay seated. I'll let you know if I need you to move." I told her, setting my notepad down on the table.  
  
"Alright. Just, try not to drag this out too much. I know I agreed to this, but I'm not really keen on being half naked on a cold table for more than an hour." She joked, though I could tell she was a bit uncomfortable with the whole thing. It was fair enough, I probably wouldn't be all that excited in her position either. I tried not to think about myself having to be questioned and examined at some point.  
  
"Right. Then, the first thing I'd like to address, are these--" I began, about to poke the armor that covered her breasts.  
  
"Don't _touch_ those!" She squeaked, smacking my hand away before I could finish carrying out the action. I quirked a brow at the human girl in confusion. I knew from anatomy that these were used for feeding human smeets, but aside from that, I wasn't sure what they did. They seemed harmless enough, and they looked pretty soft and defenseless, too.  
  
"Why not, are they a weakness?" I asked, attempting once more to touch them, just to see what would happen. But before I could, her fist came barreling towards me, connecting harshly with the side of my face. I stepped back to avoid further assult, holding a hand over my jaw. I aimed a glare at the girl, receiving a red and angry expression from her in return.  
  
  
"No, they aren't a weakness, you freak. They're sensitive to touch and stimuli and I'd prefer that you didn't play with them." She growled, cupping them as if to shield them from my gaze, like it was a shameful place to be staring at.  
  
"Why on Irk would that be useful in battle?" I snapped, feeling along my jaw to see if she'd knocked any teeth loose. Gaz rolled her eyes.  
  
"It isn't meant to be 'useful'. Humans aren't bred for war and fighting like Irkens, we just exist to exist. But, I guess it can be a weapon, if you use it properly." She answered, crossing her smooth-looking legs. _'Stop that.'_ I scolded myself, turning away from her.  
  
"How would you use something like that as a weapon? It seems like such a primitive tactic." I mused over my shoulder, before taking down a few notes I would rather not have said out loud. _'Hostile when breasts are threatened.'_  
  
"People do it all the time. They use their body to get what they want, whether that be money, security, or power. It's quite funny when you think about it, that anyone could be swayed by something as fickle as desire." She explained with a smirk. I chuckled, walking back over to her.  
  
"You say that like you've never been corrupted by it yourself?"  I teased, flashing my teeth at her in a grin. She hopped off the table.  
  
"I wouldn't say I've been 'corrupted' by desire, but I _am_ skilled in manipulation because of what it has taught me." She replied, pulling her skirt back on. I felt a sting of disappointment but I said nothing to stop her.  
  
"And you've used this form of manipulation before?" I prodded, raising a brow curiously. She paused in her dressing and smiled, straightening herself.  
  
"Well, I'm not _opposed_  to using my sex appeal to get what I want. But I never really have to, I can usually scare people into doing what I want them to. My body would be a last resort. You could probably use it yourself, if ever the need arose." She said, standing back over by the examination table. An idea crept into my head, one that I wasn't sure was very smart.  
  
**Gaz's POV**  
  
"I'd like for you to teach me how to use it." He said after a moment. By brow furrowed in confusion and I shook my head, thinking maybe I misheard him.  
  
"What? Why would you even want me to do that?" I asked, trying to control my racing heart. This was the last thing on Earth that I had expected to come from the invader. He looked at a loss for words for a moment before getting an idea in his head.   
  
"You said that this can be used as a weapon. As the invader assigned to this planet, it's my duty to ensure that the inhabitants are not a threat when the conversion team comes. That means knowing about all of their weapons and forms of warfare, both physical and psychological. You also said I can use it to my advantage as well." He explained,  his hands crossed behind his back in a military fashion. I snickered at his stance.  
  
"At ease, solider." I joked, pushing off the table. That reply was likely the biggest load of crap I'd ever heard come out of Zim's mouth. But I figured I would throw him a bone and go along with it. "I honestly don't think it would be a fair game if I did. I already know you'd be immune to it and be incapable of utilizing it." I said, crossing my arms over my chest. Zim frowned.  
  
"Why do you say that?" He asked, mirroring my posture.   
  
"I can't exactly seduce you if you find me repulsive, and _you_  can't seduce someone else you're disgusted by. It just doesn't work, unless you're a brilliant actor." I pointed out, laughing a bit. The Irken just glared down at me with a pout. My brow creased in disbelief and I began laughing again.  
  
"What, you don't think I'm gross anymore?" I asked with a smile, though the question was serious. I was actually interested to know what my intergalactic-partner-in-crime thought of me. He stiffened visibly, caught offguard by my question.   
  
"Zim has...gotten used to your odd appearance and can stomach it better now, if that's what you mean." He admitted quietly, his face darkening in its shade. I blinked in surprise, wondering if this was the Irken equivalent of blush. I grinned smugly up at him, taking a few steps towards the alien.  
  
"So, that's a yes?" I teased, already fairly sure of what the answer would be. Zim looked away, his antennae flattening against his head defensively.  
  
"You're actually attracted to me?" I asked earnestly, feeling a bit flattered that he did. He bared his teeth but didn't say anything back. I wanted to see just how far I could push him, how uncomfortable I could make him before he cried 'uncle'.  
  
"I never said that!" He finally interjected, blushing even more. I strode forward, making the distance between us shorter. He backed up to keep us sufficiently separated, but he was trapped when his Pak hit the metal wall. He stared down at me in confusion and I saw the faintest glimmer of fear in his eyes.  
  
"Alright, I'll test it out on you, but you have to be sure you really want to go down this path. Because you won't be allowed to chicken out halfway through." The invader straightened himself proudly and gave a curt nod. I quickly turned on my heel and headed for my stuff.  
  
"Fine, we'll start tomorrow. Until then, you may wanna do some research, just to make sure you understand what you're getting yourself into." I advised, pulling my shirt back on and making my way for the elevator. The invader didn't really say anything, still frozen where I'd cornered him. I payed this no mind and simply entered the elevator, not bothering to say farewell to the catatonic alien.

* * *

 

Authors note: HELLO, HI, NO I'M NOT DEAD. I'm just really bad at updating. A lot has happened since I last updated, I got married and moved in with my husband and got a new job, so I've been pretty preoccupied. I appreciate all of you for bookmarking and giving kudos, as well as giving me feedback in the comments. i know it's never fun having to wait, especially if the writer makes you wait 6 FUCKING MONTHS, but i swear, I've got big plans for this story, and I'm determined to finish it. My husband ships out December 19th for BMT so I'll need a distraction until I can come with him to his duty station. Thanks again for all of your support, it really encourages me to keep pushing through writer's block.


	19. Touch

_Feeling unknown_   
_And you're all alone_   
_Flesh and bone_   
_By the telephone_   
_Lift up the receiver_   
_I'll make you a believer_

_Take second best_   
_Put me to the test_   
_Things on your chest_   
_You need to confess_   
_I will deliver_   
_You know I'm a forgiver_   
_~Personal Jesus - Depeche Mode~_

**The Next Night**

After my shift, Zim practically dragged me from the skating rink by my wrist all the way to his base. It was painfully obvious how eager he was to find out more about what _he_  called "human seduction rituals". I wasn't sure if it was because he truly thought this could cripple the planet when used by Irken soldiers, or if he had other intentions, but I did my best not to think about it. We wound back up in the same room as the day before, and I sat casually on the table while Zim scurried around, typing on various keyboards.

"Alright Gaz-partner, teach Zim how to seduce your filthy species." The alien ordered, standing in front of me with crossed arms. I couldn't help but laugh out loud at him, to which he frowned, his antennae pinned to his head in embarrassment and anger.

"I'm sorry for laughing, I just never thought I'd be teaching you of all people something like this, y'know? Anyway, in order for this to work, it's important for you to become comfortable with physical contact and other forms of intimacy." I told him. He looked confused and a bit wary of what I'd said.

"Intimacy?" He asked. I nodded affirmatively.

"Yes. We have to build trust with one another, we have to create as much of an emotional and physical connection as possible." I answered back, but he didn't seem to understand any better.

"Emotional..." He repeated in a skeptical tone. I smiled and nodded.

"I know, emotions aren't really an Irken thing, they aren't really my thing either. But we might as well see how far we can push one another. I hope you also realize that because we have to do all of this preparation, that seduction won't really be a weapon that humans can use against Irkens." I pointed out, raising a brow at him. But Zim wasn't deterred by this, if anything, he seemed even more insistent on learning.

"But Irkens could use it against humans, yes?" He countered, and I shrugged indifferently.

"If you truly wanted to take that route, yes, you could use it against us. But it begs the question, do you really wish to pursue something like this? Because I can almost guarantee you that you won't enjoy this, at least, not at first." I warned him. The Irken's resolve was unwavering and he stiffened himself into something similar to a military stance. I rolled my eyes as he spoke.

"It's a pill I'm willing to swallow for the betterment of the mission." He assured me, causing me to snort.

"You really are a saint. Fine. If you're absolutely certain you want to continue, we can begin." I teased, sliding off the table to stand in front of the alien. Suddenly nervous, he stepped back a bit to give me room.

"Right, what will we be doing today?" He inquired, his hands fidgeting at his sides. I thought about it for a moment. I had purposefully avoided thinking about in depth until now.

"Well, as I addressed before, we'll need to build trust and learn how to handle physical contact from one another. To be completely honest, I'm a bit nervous. It's not everyday you have to learn how to get close to an alien." I laughed, gripping my arm tightly, hoping to ease my anxiety.

"My sentiment exactly, Gaz-partner. So where do we start?"

"Let's just start by familiarizing ourselves with the other's body in a less...clinical way." I said, earning another puzzled look from Zim.

"What do you mean?" He asked, and I sighed in annoyance, feeling even more embarrassed that I had to say this all out loud.

"I mean, for the sake of wetting our toes, I want you to touch me. Anywhere you want, however you want. I can stay dressed, or strip down, all depending on what you're comfortable with." I explained. I was shaking a bit. I didn't know if I could actually handle someone touching me so intimately without any sort of affection between us. I didn't know him, not the way I had known my previous partners. But he knew me. He knew some of the most vulnerable parts of me, and while it frightened me, it was also strangely comforting. It was comforting to know that, if I didn't want to, I didn't have to keep my walls up.

He had inadvertently seen me at one of my lowest points, learned about my darkest secret, spoke with my ugliest demons. Somehow, he knew me better than any of my partners ever did. So why not indulge his curiosity, and explore my own? Why not push my boundaries to learn something that no one else ever will? Vulnerability was a small price to pay for knowledge, I concluded. Zim exhaled loudly, closing his eyes for a moment, looking as uncertain as I felt. He opened them again, regaining his composure and standing up straight.

"Okay. Undress like you did yesterday, please." He stated, and I smiled a bit.

"Damn, I've gotten a please out of you. I'd have stripped more if I'd known you'd suddenly develope manners." I joked, wiggling out of my work shirt. The Irk clicked his tongue and rolled his eyes in irritation.

"You taking your filthy Earth clothes off has nothing to do with Zim's manners." The invader snapped back, only making my smile widen.

"Whatever, are you ready?" I asked impatiently, kicking my pants off to the side with my work shirt.

"Yes." He replied curtly.

"Alright, have at it." I offered, opening my arms in a welcoming gesture. Zim looked hesitant but nodded. I waited patiently for him to start, watching him agonize over where to begin. He finally decided on my hands to start with. I said nothing in protest, it was a fairly neutral place to be touched. He brought them closer to examin the digits individually. His eyes narrowed in fascination as he thumbed over my fingertips.

"What are these tiny lines on your fingers?" He inquired, truly befuddled by the patterns he continued to feel over. I gave a small smile.

"Fingerprints. All humans have unique patterns on each of their fingers, at least that's what some say. They're commonly used as evidence by the criminal justice system, to identify and catch suspects." I answered. Zim made a quiet humming noise.

"Very interesting." He mused, and I nodded in agreement. Moving on to my arms, he turned them over, observing the blue veins under the pale skin of my forearm and looked rather confused.

"You humans have blood that changes colors?" He asked, surprised by his findings. I chuckled and shook my head.

"No, it's red. It just looks blue under the skin. I don't really know why though." I replied. His eyes focused on the thin lines running down my arm and he gently traced them with the nail of his thumb. Embarrassed and uncomfortable, I pulled my arm away from him, dropping my gaze to the floor. Realizing what he'd done, Zim stood back to give me space. There was an uneasy silence that filled the space between us. The invader cleared his throat before speaking up.

"You know, I have scars of my own." He confessed, his voice wobbling with insecurity. I could tell it made him feel weak to admit to something like that. I looked up at him in surprise.

"Really?" I asked. He looked elsewhere as he answered.

"They aren't like yours, not self-inflicted. But scars nonetheless." He explained, making me scoff in amusement. They're probably scars from all the stupid fist fights he and Dib would get into.

"Show me then." I challenged with a small smirk. Zim didn't seem to share in my humor, though.

"You'll see, someday." He told me, his voice low. The way he spoke about this made me believe something much darker was behind the origin of his scars.

"You mean when I finally examin _you_?" I assumed, trying to steer the conversation elsewhere.

"Er...I suppose. When are you planning to do that, by the way?" He asked, glancing at me nervously. I chuckled and crossed my arms over my chest.

"Someday." I replied vaguely. Zim pursed his lips into a pout and narrowed his eyes at me, but decided to continue. The alien slowly moved his hands up my arms and rested them on my shoulders. I was a little uncomfortable at this point, but I stayed silent, knowing the feeling would pass. As his hands traveled to my neck, he stepped closer, becoming more intrigued. He pressed the pad of his thumb against the hollow of my neck and his eyes widened in shock. He pulled his hands away, frightened.

"What's moving under there?" He questioned, with wide, horrified eyes. At first I wasn't sure what he meant, but I quickly caught on.

"Nothing is moving, it's just my heartbeat. You had your thumb right up against one of my arteries, what you felt was blood pulsing through my body." I explained, smiling when his fearful expression turned to one of slight disgust.

"Ew." He groused, sticking his tongue out. I rolled my eyes. I grabbed his hand and pressed it against my chest.

"You can feel it here too." I said, holding his hand in place and meeting his gaze. His face darkened a bit from embarrassment and he looked away, taking his hand with him. I had to resist the deep-rooted urge to tease him about it. "Are you done?" I asked, raising a brow. He looked back to me and shook his head no, hesitantly stepping closer again and lightly held my face in his hands. He looked very uneasy but continued, bringing his face closer to look at mine. My cheeks burned from the close proximity and I had to fight back the instinct to pull away. He squeezed my face into a pout and I raised a brow in confusion. He let go of my face and opted to poke my bottom lip with curiosity in his eyes.

"What are these things supposed to be?" He asked, laughing at them a bit. I narrowed my eyes but smiled back.

"Lips. They're necessary for human speech, and can be an erogenous zone in certain situations." I told him. His brow furrowed a bit.

"Eh?" He tilted his head to the side, not understanding.

"They're sensitive to touch in intimate situations." I clarified. Zim gave a nod of understanding and moved on, reaching out to grab some of my hair.

"Zim knows this is hair, but does not see the purpose of it." The alien muttered, looking confused again. I blew a strand out of my eyes, startling the Irk and laughing at his reaction.

"At one point, humans were covered in thick hair. Similar to animals before we evolved. This is just what's left over since we don't really need it anymore." I guessed, shrugging my shoulders. "We still have hair all over our bodies, its just thin and short now." I continued. Zim looked surprised and confused to hear this and began to run his gloved hand over my stomach as if to feel for himself. I chuckled and shook my head. "That isn't going to work. You can't feel them with those thick gloves on." I told him, and he seemed to lose interest in the matter. He pulled my face close again, making me hold my breath anxiously. He studied my eyes for a long while, just staring into them.

"Zim never would have thought that human eyes had this many details to take in. They are rather pretty though, I like the color." He murmured, letting me go. I let out the breath that I'd been holding and slowly started to relax. He stood back again, looking me over for other points of interest. He finally set his gaze on my breasts and I frowned, knowing instantly what he was thinking. He met my eyes, then looked back down at my chest, and once again up at me.

"May I?" He asked, obviously not wanting to be punched again for touching them without asking.

"You really wanna go there?" I retorted, raising a brow at him. He thought for a moment, still staring at my chest.

"I suppose not, at least not yet. I'll save this for another time." He reasoned, and I silently rejoiced that I could postpone that part of the exploration.

"I appreciate your consideration." I said sarcastically, but of course it went over Zim's head. Moving on, he squatted down, focusing on my bare feet. I hadn't realized that until this point, he hadn't seen my feet uncovered.

"Why do you humans have so many useless digits?" He asked, seemingly annoyed by the fact. I laughed at the thought that maybe he was jealous that I had two extra digits on my hands and feet.

"Well, to be honest, I'm not really sure. There's speculation that we evolved with them intact to help with balance. I guess pinkies can be considered stabilizers and make our grip stronger." I shrugged. A buzzing from across the room made me jump, startled. I sighed and walked over to my work pants to retrieve my phone.

"Hello?" I droned, irritated that my startled reaction had made Zim smile in amusement.

"Gaz, it's an hour past curfew, where are you?!" Dib demanded, a small bit of panic in his voice. I looked at the clock on my phone and rolled my eyes.

"I stopped by Zim's after work, and relax, it's the weekend. I don't have a curfew, remember?" I snapped back, wrapping my arm around my middle. Zim walked over to the other side of the lab and grabbed my bag, before returning to the same spot he'd been in before.

"Well I'm thinking about enforcing one, it isn't safe for you to be out this late." My brother grumbled into the phone. My jaw dropped a bit as I caught my bag by the strap and slung it over my shoulder.

"Well it isn't really your place to be enforcing anything, now is it, Dib?" I hissed into the phone. I could feel him shrink even over the phone and I clenched my jaw. Before he could answer I ended the call and placed my phone on the examination table. I growled in aggravation and turned to Zim.

"I gotta go...we'll pick this back up next time, alright?" I said, somewhat apologetically. Zim gave a nod back and grinned.

"That's likely for the best." He replied, knowing I was likely in trouble. I glared at the Irk and got dressed. With a huff, I grabbed my bag and walked to the elevator.

"Night, Zim." I muttered, pushing the button to take me to the ground level of the base.

"Goodnight, Gaz-partner." He called as the doors closed behind me. As I passed the couch, Gir paused whatever it was he was watching and jumped off the couch.

"Is you goin' home, scary laaaaady?" He asked, following me to the door.

"Yep." I answered curtly, already in a shitty mood because of Dib. The robot gave me a sad look but I didn't feel any pity for the crazed SIR unit.

"Well, can I haz a hug before you go?" He inquired hopefully, smiling up at me. I frowned at him and thought about it for a moment before bending down to his level.

"I'll give you a hug, but you have to promise to be good for your master while I'm gone, okay?" I bargained, raising a brow. The little robot nodded so furiously, I was afraid his head would come unhinged. I gave a sigh and picked Gir up, holding him against my chest like a baby. I didn't know how else to hold the damn thing, and a baby was the closest thing to Gir's size. So I cradled the little guy for a moment before letting him hop down. He squealed with glee and laughed, running around in a circle.

"You're gonna be good for Zim, right?" I reminded him. His eyes gleamed red for a moment as he saluted me like a soldier and I smiled, opening the door. "Alright, I'll see you later then." I told him before heading back home.


End file.
